Sylvester Stallone Stands by His Controversial ’90s Sci-Fi Action Movie

Sylvester Stallone recently spoke about his 1993 sci-fi action film Demolition Man in GQ’s Iconic Characters series, insisting the movie still holds up today despite mixed reviews at the time.

The film, which stars Stallone alongside Wesley Snipes and Sandra Bullock, is set in a futuristic Los Angeles where crime has disappeared—mostly because people have become overly polite.

“I think it was a great movie. It’s one of the few films that really hold up,” Stallone told GQ. “And it’s almost close to happening. There’s a certain kind of mannerism… we call it the ‘gentilization of society.’ I thought it was just very contemporary. I thought it was really well done.”

Stallone admitted the film was not easy to make. The script went through several rewrites, and he wasn’t even the first choice for the lead role of John Spartan; Steven Seagal was initially attached to play the part. Despite these challenges, Demolition Man became one of Stallone’s more well-received ’90s action films, alongside titles like Cliffhanger and Cop Land. On Rotten Tomatoes, it holds a 66% rating.

The actor also opened up about some of the dangerous stunts he performed on set. “I thought the set design was brilliant. It was what we call a practical set. Those things really worked. Those are the two most dangerous stunts I’ve ever done, is the one with that giant claw… Sometimes the hydraulics would go sideways, and the strength of those metal claws would tear you up,” Stallone said.

He described another stunt involving a freezing chamber where he was submerged in plexiglass with warm oil being poured in. “If it goes longer than 30 seconds, it’s going to go to here [point to his mouth], and you can’t get out.”

Demolition Man was directed by Marco Brambilla in his feature film debut. The story follows John Spartan, a daring police officer known for causing destruction during his missions.

After failing to capture the crime lord Simon Phoenix (Snipes), both men are cryogenically frozen in 1996. In 2032, Phoenix escapes, and Spartan is revived to bring him to justice. The film draws inspiration from classic dystopian literature like Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World and H.G. Wells’s The Sleeper Awakes.

The movie earned $159 million worldwide and was considered a box office success. Critics were divided: Gene Siskel found it amusing but was unimpressed with the action sequences, giving it a “thumbs down,” while Roger Ebert appreciated the satire and action, giving it a “thumbs up.”

Others had mixed opinions; Vincent Canby of The New York Times called it “a significant artifact of our time or, at least, of this week,” while Peter Travers of Rolling Stone labeled it “sleek and empty as well as brutal and pointless.” Variety’s Emanuel Levy praised the technical work, including the metallic production design by David L. Snyder and cinematography by Alex Thomson, but said the film lacked a strong guiding intelligence.

Despite the criticism, Stallone remains proud of Demolition Man and its vision of a “gentle” future society. “I thought it was really well done,” he said, emphasizing that the movie’s satirical elements and action still resonate today.

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