Sylvester Stallone reveals startling reason he did not attend mum Jackie’s funeral
Sylvester Stallone has revealed the startling reason why he did not attend his mother Jackie Stallone’s funeral, six years after her death.
The three-time Oscar nominee, 80, recalled two very different moments of grief in his life – the call he got when his mum died, and the call after the death of his own son, Sage.
Sylvester lost his son Sage Stallone in 2012. His mum Jackie passed eight years later. Getty
“I was playing golf and someone called, ‘Your mother’s dead,’” the legendary Rocky star told Page Six in a candid interview.
His mother Jackie had died in 2020 at age 98. He did not attend the funeral.
She was a famed astrologer who was a celebrity in her own right, appearing on UK Big Brother in 2025. In the interview, Stallone spoke of their unconventional relationship.
The star recalled that Jackie would tell him, “The only reason you’re here is because the hanger didn’t work.”
“It got to the point where she just didn’t want to talk to me. So she died in isolation,” he confessed.
The confession came with the release of his new memoir The Steps, where he has recounted more details about their troubled relationship.
One account includes his mother’s refusal to attend the 1977 Oscars (where Rocky would win Best Picture) because Stallone wouldn’t let her hairdresser come along.
“Some people just shouldn’t have children,” he said. “And I think she knew that … She was very, very immature, and she wanted to be a star.”
Jackie Stallone and Sylvester Stallone pictured in 1997. Getty
Elsewhere in the interview, Stallone recalled the precise heartbreaking moment he learned his son had died.
Stallone’s eldest child, Sage, who he shared with first wife Sasha Czack, died suddenly in 2012 from a heart attack caused by heart disease. Sage was 36.
Sylvester Stallone and son Sage pictured in 1990. Getty
According to the outlet, Stallone was in his office working on a screenplay when his mother’s third husband, Dr. Stephen Levine, called to break the news.
“He goes, ‘I’m calling to say he’s gone,’” Stallone recalled.
The actor had never met Levine before and to this day doesn’t know why Levine was the one who called on the phone.
“It was just so cut and dry and unemotional. ‘Sorry, gone. See you later. Bye.’ That was it. Not like, Can I help you? Nothing. And that was devastating.”
Stallone’s late son made his big screen debut alongside his dad in Rocky V. Getty
A statement issued by Sylvester’s publicist at the time said the actor was “devastated and grief-stricken over the sudden loss”.
Two decades prior to his death, Sage made his big screen debut in Rocky V (1990), starring opposite his dad as Rocky Balboa’s son.
He also starred alongside his dad in 1996 thriller Daylight.
