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Michael B. Jordan (Adonis Johnson) is considered to be one of Hollywood’s brightest young actors. His performance as Oscar Grant in “Fruitvale Station,” directed by Ryan Coogler, earned him rave reviews. It premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, and won the Grand Jury Prize and Audience Award. The film also premiered at the Cannes Film Festival, where it won the award for Best First Film. At the 2014 NAACP Image Awards, the film received the award for Outstanding Independent Motion Picture. Additionally, Jordan received the Satellite Special Achievement Award for Breakthrough Performance, the Gotham Independent Film Award for Breakthrough Actor and the Santa Barbara International Film Festival Virtuoso Award for his role.
This summer, Jordan starred in “The Fantastic Four” as Johnny Storm, aka the Human Torch. He reteamed with his “Chronicle” director Josh Trank, with a cast that includes Miles Teller, Kate Mara and Jamie Bell. Jordan was also recently in Tom Gormican’s “That Awkward Moment,” opposite Zac Efron, Imogen Poots and Miles Teller.
In 2012, he starred in the box office hit “Chronicle,” a supernatural thriller that follows three Portland teens as they develop incredible powers after exposure to a mysterious substance. He also had a supporting role in George Lucas’ film “Redtails,” directed by Anthony Hemmingway, which is the story of the first African American pilots to fly in a combat squadron during WWII aka The Tuskegee Airmen.
Before beginning his feature film career, Jordan was best known for having starred in two of the most significant television dramas of the past decade. First, he received critical acclaim for his portrayal of the hard-shelled, softhearted young urbanite Wallace in HBO’s dramatic hit series “The Wire.” He then went on to star as the quarterback Vince Howard on the critically acclaimed, Emmy-winning series “Friday Night Lights” on NBC. He also portrayed recovering alcoholic Alex on the third season of NBC’s fan favorite series “Parenthood.”
Graced with the opportunity to begin a professional acting career early in his life, Jordan caught the eye of Dr. Bill Cosby and was cast in the recurring role of Michael for the CBS sitcom series “Cosby” in 1999. Almost simultaneously, he appeared on the HBO series “The Sopranos.” The following year, he was selected from hundreds of hopefuls to play Jamal in the feature film “Hardball,” starring Keanu Reeves.
In 2003, Jordan became the youngest African American actor to be contracted with the ABC network daytime drama series “All My Children,” in the role of Reggie, Susan Lucci’s adopted son. Jordan later moved to Los Angeles, where he soon landed a lead role in the independent film “Blackout,” starring Melvin Van Peebles, Jeffrey Wright and Zoe Saldana. In the fall of 2007, Jordan was cast in his first feature film, Rockmund Dunbar’s ensemble “Pastor Brown.”
He has had guest appearance roles for “CSI,” “Cold Case,” “Lie to Me,” “Without a Trace” and “Law & Order.” Jordan received NAACP Image Award nominations for Outstanding Male Actor in a Television Daytime Drama Series in 2005, 2006 and 2007. Originally from Newark, New Jersey, Jordan currently resides in Los Angeles and spends much of his spare time supporting the non-profit organization Lupus LA.
LYNN ANDREWS (Mary Anne Creed), whether she is bringing laughter to millions of television viewers around the world, moving theatre-goers to tears, thrilling movie fans, offering new insights to students by teaching Master Classes at renowned learning institutions that include Howard University, Julliard, and Carnegie Mellon, serving on Boards of prestigious organizations, or breaking new ground as a director, is one of the entertainment world’s most extraordinary performing artists.
A native of Houston, Texas, Rashad graduated Magna Cum Laude from Howard University. A versatile performer, she became a household name when she portrayed Claire Huxtable on “The Cosby Show,” a character whose appeal has earned her numerous honors and awards for over two decades. She teamed up with Bill Cosby in later years on television as Ruth Lucas on “Cosby.”
While television was a catalyst in the rise of Rashad’s career, she has also been a force on the stage, appearing both on and off Broadway, often in projects that showcase her musical talent, such as “Jelly’s Last Jam,” “Into the Woods,” “Dreamgirls” and “The Wiz.” As a dramatic actress, Rashad has performed on Broadway as Violet Weston in “August Osage County,” Big Mama in Tennessee Williams’ “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof” ( a role that she reprised on the London Stage), Aunt Ester in August Wilson’s “Gem of the Ocean” (Tony Award nomination), and Queen Britannia in Shakespeare’s “Cymbeline” at Lincoln Center. Ms. Rashad received both the Drama Desk and the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play for her riveting performance as Lena Younger in the Broadway revival of Lorraine Hansberry’s “A Raisin in the Sun.” She appeared in Tyler Perry’s “Good Deeds,” and starred in Perry’s highly acclaimed film version of Ntozake Shange’s “For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When The Rainbow Is Enuf.”
Rashad made her directorial debut at the Seattle Repertory Theater with August Wilson’s “Gem of the Ocean.” Critics gave her first foray into the directing world rave reviews. Of her work at the helm of the Ebony Repertory Theatre’s production of “A Raisin in the Sun” in the Spring of 2011, the Los Angeles Times hailed Rashad’s California directing debut. She remounted the production at the Kirk Douglas Theatre in Los Angeles and at the Westport County Playhouse in Westport, Connecticut. Rashad has also directed August Wilson’s “Joe Turner’s Come and Gone” at the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles (2014 NAACP Theatre Award for Best Director), and “Fences” at the Longwharf Theatre and the McCarter Theatre. In 2015, she returned to the Mark Taper Forum to direct Paul Oakley Stovall’s “Immediate Family”
Respected in the academic world, Rashad is the first recipient of the Denzel Washington Chair in Theatre at Fordham University. She received an Honorary Doctorate from Spelman College, where First Lady Michelle Obama delivered the 2011 commencement address. Rashad recently conducted Master Classes at the prestigious Ten Chimneys Foundation for the 2015 Lunt Fontanne Fellows. Rashad also holds Honorary Doctorates from Fordham University, Carnegie Mellon University, Howard University, Providence College, Morris Brown College, Clark Atlanta University, Barber Scotia College, St. Augustine College and Brown University.
In 2015, Rashad received the BET Honors Theatrical Arts Award, Chicago Shakespeare Theatre’s Spirit of Shakespeare Award, and the inaugural Legacy Award of the Ruben Santiago Hudson Fine Arts Learning Center. Among the other awards that decorate her walls and shelves are the 2014 Mosaic Woman Legend Award of Diversity Woman Magazine, the Texas Medal of Arts, the National Council of Negro Women’s Dorothy L. Height Dreammaker Award, AFTRA’s AMEE Award for Excellence in Entertainment, the Board of Directors of New York Women In Film and Television’s Muse Award for Outstanding Vision and Achievement, Dallas Women In Film Topaz Award, Peoples’ Choice Awards, several NAACP Image Awards, and the Pan African Film Festival’s Lifetime Achievement Award.
Rashad serves on the Advisory Board of the PRASAD Project and the Board of Directors of True Colors Theatre, the Broadway Inspirational Voices, The Actors Center, the Center for African American Studies at Princeton University, and the ADEPT Center, which is steering the restoration of the historic Brainerd Institute.
Rashad is also the mother of two adult children.
LYNN ANDREWS (Mary Anne Creed), whether she is bringing laughter to millions of television viewers around the world, moving theatre-goers to tears, thrilling movie fans, offering new insights to students by teaching Master Classes at renowned learning institutions that include Howard University, Julliard, and Carnegie Mellon, serving on Boards of prestigious organizations, or breaking new ground as a director, is one of the entertainment world’s most extraordinary performing artists.
A native of Houston, Texas, Rashad graduated Magna Cum Laude from Howard University. A versatile performer, she became a household name when she portrayed Claire Huxtable on “The Cosby Show,” a character whose appeal has earned her numerous honors and awards for over two decades. She teamed up with Bill Cosby in later years on television as Ruth Lucas on “Cosby.”
While television was a catalyst in the rise of Rashad’s career, she has also been a force on the stage, appearing both on and off Broadway, often in projects that showcase her musical talent, such as “Jelly’s Last Jam,” “Into the Woods,” “Dreamgirls” and “The Wiz.” As a dramatic actress, Rashad has performed on Broadway as Violet Weston in “August Osage County,” Big Mama in Tennessee Williams’ “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof” ( a role that she reprised on the London Stage), Aunt Ester in August Wilson’s “Gem of the Ocean” (Tony Award nomination), and Queen Britannia in Shakespeare’s “Cymbeline” at Lincoln Center. Ms. Rashad received both the Drama Desk and the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play for her riveting performance as Lena Younger in the Broadway revival of Lorraine Hansberry’s “A Raisin in the Sun.” She appeared in Tyler Perry’s “Good Deeds,” and starred in Perry’s highly acclaimed film version of Ntozake Shange’s “For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When The Rainbow Is Enuf.”
Rashad made her directorial debut at the Seattle Repertory Theater with August Wilson’s “Gem of the Ocean.” Critics gave her first foray into the directing world rave reviews. Of her work at the helm of the Ebony Repertory Theatre’s production of “A Raisin in the Sun” in the Spring of 2011, the Los Angeles Times hailed Rashad’s California directing debut. She remounted the production at the Kirk Douglas Theatre in Los Angeles and at the Westport County Playhouse in Westport, Connecticut. Rashad has also directed August Wilson’s “Joe Turner’s Come and Gone” at the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles (2014 NAACP Theatre Award for Best Director), and “Fences” at the Longwharf Theatre and the McCarter Theatre. In 2015, she returned to the Mark Taper Forum to direct Paul Oakley Stovall’s “Immediate Family”
Respected in the academic world, Rashad is the first recipient of the Denzel Washington Chair in Theatre at Fordham University. She received an Honorary Doctorate from Spelman College, where First Lady Michelle Obama delivered the 2011 commencement address. Rashad recently conducted Master Classes at the prestigious Ten Chimneys Foundation for the 2015 Lunt Fontanne Fellows. Rashad also holds Honorary Doctorates from Fordham University, Carnegie Mellon University, Howard University, Providence College, Morris Brown College, Clark Atlanta University, Barber Scotia College, St. Augustine College and Brown University.
In 2015, Rashad received the BET Honors Theatrical Arts Award, Chicago Shakespeare Theatre’s Spirit of Shakespeare Award, and the inaugural Legacy Award of the Ruben Santiago Hudson Fine Arts Learning Center. Among the other awards that decorate her walls and shelves are the 2014 Mosaic Woman Legend Award of Diversity Woman Magazine, the Texas Medal of Arts, the National Council of Negro Women’s Dorothy L. Height Dreammaker Award, AFTRA’s AMEE Award for Excellence in Entertainment, the Board of Directors of New York Women In Film and Television’s Muse Award for Outstanding Vision and Achievement, Dallas Women In Film Topaz Award, Peoples’ Choice Awards, several NAACP Image Awards, and the Pan African Film Festival’s Lifetime Achievement Award.
Rashad serves on the Advisory Board of the PRASAD Project and the Board of Directors of True Colors Theatre, the Broadway Inspirational Voices, The Actors Center, the Center for African American Studies at Princeton University, and the ADEPT Center, which is steering the restoration of the historic Brainerd Institute.
Rashad is also the mother of two adult children.
LYNN ANDREWS (Mary Anne Creed), whether she is bringing laughter to millions of television viewers around the world, moving theatre-goers to tears, thrilling movie fans, offering new insights to students by teaching Master Classes at renowned learning institutions that include Howard University, Julliard, and Carnegie Mellon, serving on Boards of prestigious organizations, or breaking new ground as a director, is one of the entertainment world’s most extraordinary performing artists.
A native of Houston, Texas, Rashad graduated Magna Cum Laude from Howard University. A versatile performer, she became a household name when she portrayed Claire Huxtable on “The Cosby Show,” a character whose appeal has earned her numerous honors and awards for over two decades. She teamed up with Bill Cosby in later years on television as Ruth Lucas on “Cosby.”
While television was a catalyst in the rise of Rashad’s career, she has also been a force on the stage, appearing both on and off Broadway, often in projects that showcase her musical talent, such as “Jelly’s Last Jam,” “Into the Woods,” “Dreamgirls” and “The Wiz.” As a dramatic actress, Rashad has performed on Broadway as Violet Weston in “August Osage County,” Big Mama in Tennessee Williams’ “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof” ( a role that she reprised on the London Stage), Aunt Ester in August Wilson’s “Gem of the Ocean” (Tony Award nomination), and Queen Britannia in Shakespeare’s “Cymbeline” at Lincoln Center. Ms. Rashad received both the Drama Desk and the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play for her riveting performance as Lena Younger in the Broadway revival of Lorraine Hansberry’s “A Raisin in the Sun.” She appeared in Tyler Perry’s “Good Deeds,” and starred in Perry’s highly acclaimed film version of Ntozake Shange’s “For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When The Rainbow Is Enuf.”
Rashad made her directorial debut at the Seattle Repertory Theater with August Wilson’s “Gem of the Ocean.” Critics gave her first foray into the directing world rave reviews. Of her work at the helm of the Ebony Repertory Theatre’s production of “A Raisin in the Sun” in the Spring of 2011, the Los Angeles Times hailed Rashad’s California directing debut. She remounted the production at the Kirk Douglas Theatre in Los Angeles and at the Westport County Playhouse in Westport, Connecticut. Rashad has also directed August Wilson’s “Joe Turner’s Come and Gone” at the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles (2014 NAACP Theatre Award for Best Director), and “Fences” at the Longwharf Theatre and the McCarter Theatre. In 2015, she returned to the Mark Taper Forum to direct Paul Oakley Stovall’s “Immediate Family”
Respected in the academic world, Rashad is the first recipient of the Denzel Washington Chair in Theatre at Fordham University. She received an Honorary Doctorate from Spelman College, where First Lady Michelle Obama delivered the 2011 commencement address. Rashad recently conducted Master Classes at the prestigious Ten Chimneys Foundation for the 2015 Lunt Fontanne Fellows. Rashad also holds Honorary Doctorates from Fordham University, Carnegie Mellon University, Howard University, Providence College, Morris Brown College, Clark Atlanta University, Barber Scotia College, St. Augustine College and Brown University.
In 2015, Rashad received the BET Honors Theatrical Arts Award, Chicago Shakespeare Theatre’s Spirit of Shakespeare Award, and the inaugural Legacy Award of the Ruben Santiago Hudson Fine Arts Learning Center. Among the other awards that decorate her walls and shelves are the 2014 Mosaic Woman Legend Award of Diversity Woman Magazine, the Texas Medal of Arts, the National Council of Negro Women’s Dorothy L. Height Dreammaker Award, AFTRA’s AMEE Award for Excellence in Entertainment, the Board of Directors of New York Women In Film and Television’s Muse Award for Outstanding Vision and Achievement, Dallas Women In Film Topaz Award, Peoples’ Choice Awards, several NAACP Image Awards, and the Pan African Film Festival’s Lifetime Achievement Award.
Rashad serves on the Advisory Board of the PRASAD Project and the Board of Directors of True Colors Theatre, the Broadway Inspirational Voices, The Actors Center, the Center for African American Studies at Princeton University, and the ADEPT Center, which is steering the restoration of the historic Brainerd Institute.
Rashad is also the mother of two adult children.
LYNN ANDREWS (Mary Anne Creed), whether she is bringing laughter to millions of television viewers around the world, moving theatre-goers to tears, thrilling movie fans, offering new insights to students by teaching Master Classes at renowned learning institutions that include Howard University, Julliard, and Carnegie Mellon, serving on Boards of prestigious organizations, or breaking new ground as a director, is one of the entertainment world’s most extraordinary performing artists.
A native of Houston, Texas, Rashad graduated Magna Cum Laude from Howard University. A versatile performer, she became a household name when she portrayed Claire Huxtable on “The Cosby Show,” a character whose appeal has earned her numerous honors and awards for over two decades. She teamed up with Bill Cosby in later years on television as Ruth Lucas on “Cosby.”
While television was a catalyst in the rise of Rashad’s career, she has also been a force on the stage, appearing both on and off Broadway, often in projects that showcase her musical talent, such as “Jelly’s Last Jam,” “Into the Woods,” “Dreamgirls” and “The Wiz.” As a dramatic actress, Rashad has performed on Broadway as Violet Weston in “August Osage County,” Big Mama in Tennessee Williams’ “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof” ( a role that she reprised on the London Stage), Aunt Ester in August Wilson’s “Gem of the Ocean” (Tony Award nomination), and Queen Britannia in Shakespeare’s “Cymbeline” at Lincoln Center. Ms. Rashad received both the Drama Desk and the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play for her riveting performance as Lena Younger in the Broadway revival of Lorraine Hansberry’s “A Raisin in the Sun.” She appeared in Tyler Perry’s “Good Deeds,” and starred in Perry’s highly acclaimed film version of Ntozake Shange’s “For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When The Rainbow Is Enuf.”
Rashad made her directorial debut at the Seattle Repertory Theater with August Wilson’s “Gem of the Ocean.” Critics gave her first foray into the directing world rave reviews. Of her work at the helm of the Ebony Repertory Theatre’s production of “A Raisin in the Sun” in the Spring of 2011, the Los Angeles Times hailed Rashad’s California directing debut. She remounted the production at the Kirk Douglas Theatre in Los Angeles and at the Westport County Playhouse in Westport, Connecticut. Rashad has also directed August Wilson’s “Joe Turner’s Come and Gone” at the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles (2014 NAACP Theatre Award for Best Director), and “Fences” at the Longwharf Theatre and the McCarter Theatre. In 2015, she returned to the Mark Taper Forum to direct Paul Oakley Stovall’s “Immediate Family”
Respected in the academic world, Rashad is the first recipient of the Denzel Washington Chair in Theatre at Fordham University. She received an Honorary Doctorate from Spelman College, where First Lady Michelle Obama delivered the 2011 commencement address. Rashad recently conducted Master Classes at the prestigious Ten Chimneys Foundation for the 2015 Lunt Fontanne Fellows. Rashad also holds Honorary Doctorates from Fordham University, Carnegie Mellon University, Howard University, Providence College, Morris Brown College, Clark Atlanta University, Barber Scotia College, St. Augustine College and Brown University.
In 2015, Rashad received the BET Honors Theatrical Arts Award, Chicago Shakespeare Theatre’s Spirit of Shakespeare Award, and the inaugural Legacy Award of the Ruben Santiago Hudson Fine Arts Learning Center. Among the other awards that decorate her walls and shelves are the 2014 Mosaic Woman Legend Award of Diversity Woman Magazine, the Texas Medal of Arts, the National Council of Negro Women’s Dorothy L. Height Dreammaker Award, AFTRA’s AMEE Award for Excellence in Entertainment, the Board of Directors of New York Women In Film and Television’s Muse Award for Outstanding Vision and Achievement, Dallas Women In Film Topaz Award, Peoples’ Choice Awards, several NAACP Image Awards, and the Pan African Film Festival’s Lifetime Achievement Award.
Rashad serves on the Advisory Board of the PRASAD Project and the Board of Directors of True Colors Theatre, the Broadway Inspirational Voices, The Actors Center, the Center for African American Studies at Princeton University, and the ADEPT Center, which is steering the restoration of the historic Brainerd Institute.
Rashad is also the mother of two adult children.
TESSA THOMPSON (Bianca) has a longstanding career which reached special prominence with her most recent role as civil rights activist Diane Nash in the Brad Pitt/Oprah Winfreyproduced film “Selma.” After its initial premiere at the American Film Institute Festival on November 11, 2014, the film had a wider theatrical release on January 9, 2015, and a commemorative rerelease on March 20, 2015, in honor of the 50th anniversary of the historical march. It garnered nominations for Best Picture and awards for Best Original Song at both the Golden Globe and Academy Awards, and additional Best Director and Best Actor nominations at the Golden Globes.
In the spring, Thompson will make her off-Broadway debut in the Second Stage Theater production of Lydia R. Diamond’s “Smart People,” appearing alongside a case that also includes Joshua Jackson, Mahershala Ali and Anne Son, for director Kenny Leon. “Smart People” begins previews January 26, 2016, ahead of a February 11, 2016 opening.
Most recently, Thompson joined the cast of HBO’s upcoming drama series “Westworld.” Described as a dark odyssey about the dawn of artificial consciousness and the future of sin, “Westworld,” from Jonathan Nolan and J.J. Abrams, is inspired by the 1973 feature from writer-director Michael Crichton. Thompson will play Charlotte Hale, a mysterious and savvy provocateur with a unique perspective. She joins Anthony Hopkins, Ed Harris, Evan Rachel Wood, James Marsden, Thandie Newton and Jeffrey Wright. The series is slated to debut in 2016.
Thompson recently wrapped filming the new action comedy “War on Everyone,” about two corrupt cops in New Mexico who set out to blackmail and frame every criminal unfortunate enough to cross their path. Theo James, Alexander Skarsgård and Michael Peña also star, for director John Michael McDonagh.
Thompson also starred in the critically acclaimed 2014 film “Dear White People.” The Justin Simien independent satirical drama, which followed the lives of various black students at an American university, hit theaters on October 17, 2014, after its debut at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival. Thompson’s performance as Samantha White landed her a Gotham Award for Breakthrough Actor as well as a nomination for Outstanding Actress in a Motion Picture for the 46th Annual NAACP Image Awards.
In 2010, Thompson starred as Nyla/Purple in Tyler Perry’s film “For Colored Girls,” alongside an ensemble cast of co-stars, including Hollywood heavyweights Janet Jackson, Whoopi Goldberg, Phylicia Rashad and Kerry Washington. The film portrayed a series of African-American women, each of whom dealt with their own personal struggles and conflicts such as love, abandonment, rape, infidelity and abortion.
Thompson started her career at the young age of 18, with her professional debut playing Juliet in “Romeo and Juliet: Antebellum New Orleans 1836,” for which she received an NAACP Image Award nomination. She then went on to her first feature film appearance as Scarlet in the 2006 remake of the horror film “When a Stranger Calls.” Between 2008 and 2009, she also appeared in the films “Make it Happen,” “The Human Contract,” “Periphery,” “Red & Blue Marbles,” and “Mississippi Damned,” for which she was awarded a Grand Jury prize for Best Actress at the American Black Film Festival.
On top of these early theater and film features, Thompson’s career has also extended into the television arena. She is best known for her role as series regular Jackie Cook on the second season of the hit CW teen noir drama “Veronica Mars.” Thompson also starred as Sara Freeman on BBC’s first original scripted program, “Copper,” from 2012 to 2013. The show followed an Irish immigrant police officer in 1860s New York City, and explored the effects of the American Civil War and the social stratification between New York’s aristocracy and the African American population.
Thompson’s other television credits include guest roles as Rebecca Taylor on the fourth season of the CW’s hit sci-fi drama “Heroes”; Billie Ducette in CBS’s police series “Cold Case”; Camille on ABC’s medical series “Grey’s Anatomy”; and Nikki Barnes on the CW’s teen drama “Hidden Palms.” She has also appeared as a guest star in shows such as “Life,” “Private Practice,” “Detroit 187,” “Rizzoli & Isles,” “Off the Map” and “666 Park Avenue.”
Thompson currently resides in Los Angeles, California.
Sylvester Stallone (Rocky Balboa/Producer) has established worldwide recognition as an actor, writer and director since he played the title role in his own screenplay of “Rocky,” which won the Academy Award for 1976’s Best Picture.
Since that seminal motion picture, “Rocky” grew to a franchise of five sequels and, in 2006, Stallone concluded the series with “Rocky Balboa,” a critical and audience success which resolutely confirmed both Stallone and Rocky as iconic cultural symbols. In addition, to commemorate a character which has become as real as any living person to film-going audiences around the world, a statue of Rocky Balboa was placed at the foot of the now-famous steps of the Philadelphia Art Museum at a dedication ceremony presided over by the Mayor.
In more recent times Stallone wrote, directed and starred in “Rambo,” which continued the saga of Vietnam vet John Rambo 25 years after the debut of “Rambo: First Blood.” For the latest installment, Stallone took the company on location to the inner jungles of Burma, basing the compelling story in a country where crimes against humanity, civil war and genocide have existed for over 60 years, and no one is doing anything about it.
Stallone then released his most ambitious project, the action thriller
“The Expendables,” which he wrote, directed and starred in, and for which he hired an all star cast, including Jason Statham, Mickey Rourke, Jet Li, Eric Roberts, Dolph Lungren and Steve Austin, Bruce Willis and Arnold Schwarzenegger, and which opened to number one at the box office, making him the only actor to open a number one film across five decades. Stallone took the company on location to the interior of Brazil and the city streets New Orleans, filming over just a few short months.
Born in New York City, Stallone attended school in suburban Philadelphia, where he first started acting and also became a star football player. He then spent two years instructing at the American College of Switzerland in Geneva.
Returning to the United States, he enrolled as a drama major at the University of Miami and also began to write. Stallone left college to pursue an acting career in New York City, but the jobs did not come easily. By 1973, Stallone had auditioned for almost every casting agent in New York and had gone on thousands of acting calls, with little success.
During this period, he turned more and more to writing, churning out numerous screenplays while waiting for his acting break. The opportunity first came in 1974 when he was cast as one of the leads in “The Lords of Flatbush.”
He also received his first writing credit, for additional dialogue, on this film.
With the money earned from that film, Stallone left New York for Hollywood. He again began to make the rounds of studios and casting agents, managing to get a few small roles in television and movies. He also continued to pursue writing.
Prize fighter Rocky Balboa was born and given life in a script Stallone wrote in longhand. Several producers offered to buy the screenplay, wanting to cast a name star in the title role, which Stallone insisted on playing himself.
Although his bank balance was barely $100, Stallone held fast, with his perseverance finally paying off in a big way.
In addition to “Rocky Balboa” and “Rambo,” Stallone’s credits as actor/writer/director are “Rocky II” and “Paradise Alley.” As actor and co-writer, Stallone filmed “F.I.S.T.,” “First Blood,” “Rambo: First Blood Part II,” “Rhinestone” and “Rambo III.” He co-wrote, directed and produced “Staying Alive” and starred in “Nighthawks,” “Victory,” “Tango & Cash” and “Lock Up.” “Rocky V,” starring and written by Stallone and directed by John Avildsen, opened in 1990.
He also starred in “Demolition Man,” which set box-office records for its Fall 1993 release, and in the films “The Specialist,” “Assassins” and “Daylight.”
Stallone starred in the challenging and unique role of Freddy Heflin in the feature film “Copland,” which has garnered him further international critical and audience acclaim.
He had the starring role in “Get Carter,” co-starring Michael Caine, which opened in the Fall of 2000. Stallone wrote and starred in the number one box office race car thriller “Driven,” co-starring Burt Reynolds and Christian de la Fuente. In addition, he filmed “Avenging Angelo,” co-starring Madeline Stowe. He also starred in the role of The Toymaker for director Robert Rodriguez in the hit film “Spy Kids 3,” the final installment of that successful film franchise.
He was associated with “The Contender,” a powerful and action-packed unscripted series which aired on the NBC Television Network and then ESPN.
In 2002 Stallone was honored by the Video Dealers Software Association when he was presented with the Action Star of the Millennium Award at the organization’s 21st Annual Convention.
In addition, Stallone’s influence and appreciation are acknowledged worldwide. In 2008, the Zurich Film Festival presented him with the festival’s Inaugural Golden Icon Award, which recognized his achievements as a great American Actor and Filmmaker, and in 2009, the Venice Film Festival honored Stallone with its Glory to the Filmmaker Award.
For the release of “The Expendables,” Stallone was honored at the Spike TV’s Guy’s Choice Awards with the coveted GuyCon Award, presented by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. He was also feted at the 2010 Los Angeles Film Festival as the event’s Honored Guest and received the Visionary Award at the Hollywood Reporter Key Arts 2010 Event. At the 2010 Comic-Con Convention, he was the first inductee into the IGN Action Hero Hall of Fame.
“The Expendables 2,” the highly anticipated sequel, opened to number one at the box office. Shot on location in Bulgaria, Stallone wrote and starred in the film, along with Arnold Schwarzenegger, Bruce Willis Jason Statham and the original “Expendables” cast. Liam Hemsworth, Jean-Claude Van Damme and Chuck Norris also starred.
Stallone appeared in “Bullet To the Head,” for director Walter Hill and producer Joel Silver; “Escape Plan,” co-starring with Arnold Schwarzenegger; and with Robert De Niro in the feature “Grudge Match.” He starred in “Expendables 3” with many of the original cast and the additions of Mel Gibson, Harrison Ford and Antonio Banderas. The film was also shot on location in Bulgaria.
In March, 2014 “Rocky the Musical” opened at The Winter Garden on Broadway. The musical was based on the original film written by Stallone, with music by Stephen Flaherty and lyrics by Lynn Ahrens, and earned a Best Actor Tony Award nomination for the play’s star, Andy Karl.
In addition to his extensive film career, Stallone is an accomplished artist, completing paintings on canvas as well as sculpture work. He has had impressive exhibitions at Art Basil, The Russian State Museum and, most recently, at the Nice Museum of Contemporary Art in France.