Sylvester Stallone is accused of throwing insults at a team of background actors while filming his new TV series Tulsa King.
The 77-year-old Rocky actor allegedly called some of the extras "ugly", reportedly mocking someone alongside an unnamed director, calling one of the contributors a "fat guy with a cane" and describing another as a "tub of lard" on the Paramount+ series set.
The director of the show has strenuously denied the claims. The Mirror has contacted Stallone's reps for comment.
It is claimed Sly said the camera crew needed to bring in "pretty young girls to be around me". Casting company Rose Locke Casting of Atlanta has since pulled out of the production after allegations came out on social media, according to Deadline.
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Allegations have been shared all over social media (@TheJulieBenson/Twitter)"We wanted to send you an update on the happenings here in our casting world. We have chosen to part ways with Tulsa King. We will be finishing up next week and the 12th will be our last day," they wrote on Facebook this week, per the outlet.
"We send well wishes to whomever takes over the show. We thank all of you great background artists for your continued support," their post added. In another upload, Rose appeared to urge actors to get in touch after allegations of the "toxic" filming set. It adds: "I have been informed of certain things that happened on Thursday, the first day of the casino [shoot]. I came the 2nd day (Friday) to see what was happening.
"At the end of the day I resigned because it was a clear toxic environment that I was not comfortable putting myself or background artists in." An insider told Deadline that bosses became aware of the posts and "are looking into the matter".
Dee McDaniel Simmons of South Carolina, another casting page owner, has also weighed in the ordeal, penning on their page: "Several groups are talking about what happened on the set of Tulsa King filming in Atlanta. At first I had hoped it was just a bad rumor started by 1 person who may have felt some type of way; but there have been countless people who were on set and have stated what they saw, how they were treated, etc.
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Sly hasn't yet publicly spoke about the allegations (Weiss Eubanks/NBCUniversal via Getty Images)"Sadly Sly Stallone and crew made things miserable for the background artists and many have said the set was completely unprofessional and a total mess. Although I have not personally worked with Rose Locke & CL Casting … I have great respect for them for pulling out of the project and looking out for their background artists."
The programme's director and producer Craig Zisk has denied Locke's allegations and says no insults were made by anyone on set, according to TMZ. He told the outlet Rose wasn't on set during the day of the alleged insults and that her company had 'improperly cast the extras' who were supposed to "be in a hip, young bar" and in the 25- to 35-year-old range. The background actors were thought to be "considerably older," according to TMZ, however Zisk explained, "They were polite and did their jobs."
He alleges Rose actually quit when he told her she needed to submit headshots of the extras before she replied, "I don’t work that way", per TMZ. He reportedly told her, "That's the way I work and everyone I know works that way in extras casting" before she responded by saying "ok" and quitting the show. Zisk insists Stallone never said anything about "pretty girls" and that his wife Jennifer Flavin was with him on set.
Tulsa King is Sly's first TV starring gig in which he plays New York mob boss Dwight “The General” Manfredi, who, after spending 25 years in prison, is sent by his bosses to be a force in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
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