<\/p>\n
Arnold Schwarzenegger<\/strong><\/a> and Sylvester Stallone<\/strong><\/a> were once longstanding rivals \u2014 and are now rehashing what started the drama in the first place.<\/p>\n \u201cI mean, as soon as I saw him, it was, like, bang, two alphas hitting,\u201d Stallone, 79, recalled during a joint TMZ<\/a> sit-down on Wednesday, November 5. \u201cIf we walked into a party, we\u2019d be staring at each other for a few seconds, and then, \u2018I gotta get that guy. He didn\u2019t do anything wrong, but he will.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n Schwarzenegger, 78, and Stallone\u2019s rivalry initially began over their respective early careers as action stars.<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s not that much room up [at the top]. Everyone wants to be on the point,\u201d Stallone said. \u201cI think it\u2019s something you\u2019re born with. I would go out for parts I knew I was wrong for, but I wanted them so bad.\u201d<\/p>\n Sylvester Stallone Through the Years: From \u2018Rocky\u2019 to \u2018The Family Stallone\u2019<\/a><\/p>\n According to Stallone, Schwarzenegger was a motivating factor to book roles.<\/p>\n \u201cDare I say it, he was a competition or threat, whatever word you want to use,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Schwarzenegger, meanwhile, admitted that he kickstarted the feud<\/a> by \u201copening up [his]\u00a0 mouth\u201d and \u201csaying stupid things.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cRocky <\/i>came out, and I was blown away by his acting and the movie,\u201d Schwarzenegger recalled. \u201cThen, after we were at the Golden Globes and we both won.\u201d<\/p>\n During the 1977 ceremony, Stallone even threw a bouquet of flowers at Schwarzenegger.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m going, \u2018He won Best Newcomer?\u2019 No offense, but Rocky <\/i>was a pretty good debut, and he\u2019s looking pretty proud of himself,\u201d Stallone said. \u201cI didn\u2019t think we were going to win Best Picture. We win, and I lost it. I literally went and picked up this entire bouquet of flowers and tossed them straight up in the air, sort of aiming toward his side of the table. He\u2019s sitting there, like, \u2018OK, he just threw down the gauntlet.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n Arnold Schwarzenegger Through the Years: Professional Bodybuilder, Action Superstar, California Governor and More<\/a><\/p>\n Schwarzenegger concurred, adding that he saw the floral toss as \u201cthe beginning of a battle.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt just developed from then on,\u201d Schwarzenegger said. \u201cNow, I had to chase him. He did Rocky 2 <\/i>and the Rocky 3 <\/i>and all these movies and it kept going up and up. My salary was 10 percent of his. When he got $2 million, I got $200,000. \u2026 I had to chase behind him<\/a>, and I said, \u2018This has to stop.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n While Schwarzenegger admitted that he didn\u2019t \u201cboycott\u201d any of Stallone\u2019s acclaimed films at the time, he did use it as a motivator to work even harder to get the same type of roles and income.<\/p>\n \u201cI had to kind of catch up to that,\u201d he said. \u201cIt gave me motivation, and this is what the whole thing was about. It became very, very competitive.\u201d<\/p>\n Eventually, the dust settled between Schwarzenegger and Stallone, allowing the two actors to form a friendship.<\/p>\n