Movies Better Actor: Sylvester Stallone or Bruce Willis?

[Mark McMichael]

A much underrated movie. It's one of those early 80s movies that is still spiritually part of the 70s like Cruising with Pacino and Outland with Sean Connery.

I am such a big Rutger Hauer fan. Loved him LadyHawke too around that same time, another under appreciate fav of mine.

Maybe I just like movies with 'Hawk' in the second part of the name??

I was a little disappointed that in his latter years he has not caught on as a top tier older guy, baddy as he can play that role. Anyway the guys IMDB is as long as anyone I have ever seen so he is doing something right.

 

[BisexualMMA]

I am such a big Rutger Hauer fan. Loved him LadyHawke too around that same time, another under appreciate fav of mine.

Maybe I just like movies with 'Hawk' in the second part of the name??

I was a little disappointed that in his latter years he has not caught on as a top tier older guy, baddy as he can play that role. Anyway the guys IMDB is as long as anyone I have ever seen so he is doing something right.

Well, Rutger did kind of have a spell as an office oriented bad guy like in the Nolan Batman films. A few guys like Tom Berenger got those kinds of roles. Even Roy Scheider in The Rainmaker.

But yeah I guess the window has been open for whoever would be the new Ronny Cox...

 

[AGGAMEMNON66]

Willis I’d say is better but not by much. I’d say both are more similar than different in that it’s their charisma that helps them add to their best films rather than stellar acting.

 

[AGGAMEMNON66]

Well, Rutger did kind of have a spell as an office oriented bad guy like in the Nolan Batman films. A few guys like Tom Berenger got those kinds of roles. Even Roy Scheider in The Rainmaker.

But yeah I guess the window has been open for whoever would be the new Ronny Cox...

And Rutger played the priest in ‘Sin City’ loved the director getting he and Rourke in a scene together. One of my favorite scenes in that film.

 

[heavy_hands]

Stallone did a good job acting in Copland.

Also, in Stop or My Mom Will Shoot.

Sly was perfectly cast in Copland…just watched it again last week. great movie

 

[gonads20]

Sly

I came here to post this clip. This scene hits me in feels. First blood tackled the issue of PTSD before people even talked about PTSD and the challenges of returning to civilian life.

"Back there I could fly a gunship, I could drive a tank, I was in charge of million dollar equipment, back here I can't even hold a job PARKING CARS"

My pick is Sly.

 

[MIKOM]

Stallone made the best use of his talents. Willis is the biggest waste of talent out of the two.

 

[ThinkGreen]

I came here to post this clip. This scene hits me in feels. First blood tackled the issue of PTSD before people even talked about PTSD and the challenges of returning to civilian life.

"Back there I could fly a gunship, I could drive a tank, I was in charge of million dollar equipment, back here I can't even hold a job PARKING CARS"

My pick is Sly.

that movie really comes together with that last monologue. It’s one of my favorites.

 

[JSN]

Bruce Willis is the more talented actor. Off the top of my head, his best acting performance is probably 12 Monkeys.

Yeah no idea why notably bad actor Sly Stallone is leading this pole. I certainly wouldn’t put Willis in a tier near Laurence Olivier, but he’s considerably better than Stallone.

 

[BisexualMMA]

Stallone is reasonably solid or good in a variety of movies but I feel his great performances are pretty limited to Balboa and Copland.

I would say that the characterization of Rambo in the first film is on par with those, and then the way the anger came back to just under the surface in the 4th film was pretty close...as was much of the performance in Rambo 2.

I would also say that both Over the Top and Lock Up are two substantially overlooked performances in terms of character and acting. Overlooked in no small part because they are seen as pretty generic action stories and in some ways they are but there was an authenticity in both of those performances that I think is a tier above some of the more well known movies like Demolition Man, Cliffhanger, the various hitman movies of the 90s, etc.

I think those two movies would have been the career best performances of nearly every other action star, and probably with room to spare.

 

[Phlog]

You have to be joking, Bruce Willis doesn't act, he is just himself. Stallone, it could be argued is not a great actor, but he acts.

 

[DaRivv20]

I still maintain that the first Rocky and Rambo films are genuinely great films.

Stallone in Rambo First Blood part 1 is a good performance in my opinion.

 

[The Big Yin]

Stallone for Rocky 1&2 and First blood.

 

[Sano]

Moonlighting was an underrated show..

Moonlighting was great. Miss that show.

 

[Goon Dog]

Bruce is the better actor, but Sly is the more talented. He has seriously legit screenwriting credits.

 

[BisexualMMA]

Moonlighting was great. Miss that show.

Probably the best music in any show other than Miami Vice.

 

[GtehMVP]

Both can act when they want to, but Stallone has the better range.

This still gets me,

 

[Strychnine]

Stallone for me.