Best known for his role as the unlikely boxing champion ‘Rocky Balboa,’ Sylvester Stallone’s career as a Hollywood star is perhaps just as inspirational as the pugilist he portrayed way back in the 1970’s.

Stallone’s first chance on camera came when he starred in an adult flick. Fast forward just a few years and Stallone was starring in box office hit after box office hit.

In fact, over the course of his near-50-year acting career, Stallone has landed roles in over 50 big budget hit movies.

The revival of the ‘Rocky’ movies and spin off ‘Creed,’ and also ‘The Expendables Trilogy’ and others see Stallone remaining busy well into pensionable age. But how does he stay so active at such an age?

Rocky 7?

It would appear that years of hard work in the gym have kept Sly in prime condition. There are very few other actors still in this kind of shape at 71. Stallone was actually the subject of a death hoax post on social media this year.

Something he later dismissed:

“Please ignore this stupidity,” Stallone wrote in an Instagram post.

“Alive and well and happy and healthy.”

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People’s Champ

While talking to GQ, Stallone delved into the early years of his acting career, such as Rocky, and more:

It wasn’t like I went in there with this blueprint for success. I worked on instinct.

I wanted a guy who talks like a child, and somewhere in there are incredible nuts of wisdom. But he’s one malapropism after another.

I’d never seen that in any boxing film. Rocky‘s about a guy who’s just trying to get something out of life.”

“He knows he’s a ham ‘n’ egger. He says, “I’m not even worth giving a title shot to. I’m a joke. But I’ve got me this girl.” That was great.

I said, “If we can go there, and the by-product is he happens to fight, there’s a movie.” If it was just about the fight, you’d be bored.”

Regrets? There’s tons. That is the fuel that keeps me going. It’s not success, it’s not money. It’s regret. I was on cruise control from ’85 to ’95, and it was my fault. There were a lot of self-inflicted wounds, when I was not doing any original material. I wasn’t directing. I wasn’t writing. That’s not who I am.”

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“I wish it was, it’d sure be a lot simpler, but it seems my fate is to be self-generating, produce my own films.

I try to direct. That’s why I admire Eastwood. Started as an amateur and became an auteur.

I’m sorry I didn’t adhere to opportunities presented, because I could’ve done so many things.”

“I work out a lot, and I didn’t mingle in a lot of political circles. I thought you just went to premieres and everybody loved everybody. A kind of naïveté, I had.

Peter Sellers gave me some incredible advice: “I’ll never see you again, but remember the three H‘s: Hollywood Hates Happiness.” And I thought, “That’s bleak!”

Nobody hopes everyone goes down in abject failure. I like the competition—Bruce, Arnold… It was invigorating. “He did that? I can do better!”