Sylvester Stallone's Biggest Regret Is Not Turning These Three Movies Into Franchises

When Sylvester Stallone won the hearts of moviegoers all over the world with "Rocky," there was instantly a demand for more films featuring the underdog boxer. He came so close to beating Apollo Creed (Carl Weathers) in the first movie, we just had to see him win! After the success of "Rocky II," it was clear that films featuring the Italian Stallion would become Stallone's signature franchise (here's the correct order to watch the "Rocky" franchise, if you need it), but the savvy star didn't want to be associated with just one character. So when he scored a hit with "First Blood" in 1982, he made sure the one man army named John Rambo would become the focus of his second franchise.

With very few exceptions, franchises tend to run out of gas after four or five movies. The creative stewards of these series fail to generate new ideas, and, eventually, moviegoers lose interest. Stallone witnessed this first-hand at the end of the 1980s, when "Rambo III" and "Rocky V" massively underperformed at the box office. Both franchises seemed to be at the end of their runs, which left Sly looking for new characters that might catch fire with his fanbase. During a 2025 interview with GQ, Stallone identified his "biggest regret" and pointed to three movies that he believes should've been franchises: "Cobra," "Tango & Cash" and "Demolition Man." Had just one of these movies spawned a series of sequels, Stallone's 1990s might've not been such a bumpy ride. So what kept him from moving forward on these potential franchises?

In the GQ interview, Sylvester Stallone said "Cobra," "Tango & Cash," and "Demolition Man" probably had "at least three movies in them, but I was just maybe too lazy." While Stallone does regret the cult classic "Cobra" and thinks it's half-baked, there was a different issue that kept them from becoming franchises.

All three movies were global hits, but underperformed domestically. "Cobra" grossed $49 million domestically against a $25 million budget, "Tango & Cash" stalled out at $63M against a $54M budget, and "Demolition Man" made $58M against a budget that was reportedly as high as $77M. Since sequels in the 1980s and '90s rarely made more than the first movie, studios were likely hesitant to go back for seconds on these films. And in the case of 1986's "Cobra," Stallone might've simply figured he didn't need a third franchise, since Rocky and Rambo were still doing well.

I do, however, share Stallone's regret that we didn't get at least one sequel to each of these movies. "Cobra" is a shamelessly entertaining and gratuitously violent riff on "Dirty Harry;" director George P. Cosmatos goes bonkers with the set pieces and revels in the silliness of Stallone's screenplay. A "Tango & Cash" sequel would've meant more Sly and Kurt Russell, which ... yes, please! Ditto "Demolition Man," which surely would've found a way to bring back Wesley Snipes (though a post-"Speed" Sandra Bullock probably would've been unavailable).

Ultimately, Stallone got back in the franchise groove with nostalgia-driven revisits of Rocky and Rambo, while launching a new one with the all-star exploits of "The Expendables." I'm just surprised he hasn't revisited his arm-wrestling character Lincoln Hawk from "Over the Top." Maybe this time he could explore the world of competitive leg wrestling.