Stallone accused of verbally abusing background actors
Sylvester Stallone is facing allegations of fostering a “toxic environment” for background actors on the set of Paramount+ series “Tulsa King,” ultimately leading to the casting director's departure.
Multiple outlets have reported on allegations that the “Rocky” icon, 77, made offensive and abusive remarks regarding the appearance of certain extras on the TV series, created by “Yellowstone” showrunner and juggernaut Taylor Sheridan.
The alleged claims made by Casting Supervisor Rose Locke — reportedly posted to a private Facebook group for background actors — were captured in a screenshot shared in a since-deleted tweet by “Star Trek: Prodigy” writer Julie Benson, as well as on the Charleston SC Background Actors/Crew page.
According to the accusations, Stallone referred to the extras as “f--king ugly.”
“He and the director proceeded to call certain people terrible names and laughed at them. `Tub of lard,' `fat guy with cane' and was making fun of their weight and handicaps,” read one such screenshot, noting that Locke resigned as a result of the alleged mistreatment.
Locke reportedly confirmed in one of the posts that she'd “resigned because it was a clear toxic environment that I was not comfortable putting myself or background artists in.”
“Tulsa King” director and executive producer Craig Zisk, also known for “Weeds,” refuted the claims to TMZ. He said the scene in question called for background actors aged 25 to 35, but significantly older extras were brought in.
“They were polite and did their jobs,” he said, noting that he did ultimately use them in the scene, but told Locke she would need to submit headshots of potential extras going forward.
Locke reportedly told Zisk she doesn't “work that way,” to which he said: “That's the way I work and everyone I know works that way in extras casting.”