10 Movie Performances Even MORE Impressive When You Know The Truth

10. Sylvester Stallone Risked It All To Be Rocky - Rocky

Back in the early 1970's, Sylvester Stallone wasn't the same global superstar and all round action badass we know and love today. Far from it, in fact. The struggling actor was so broke after starring in The Lords of the Flatbush that he had no choice but to sell his dog or the poor thing would've no doubt starved in his care.

However, the young thespian eventually found himself captivated by Chuck Wepner's performance against Muhammad Ali during a fight and soon spent the next three-and-a-half days writing the screenplay for what would ultimately become Rocky. He then astoundingly refused to sell the script to producers, despite them offering him a whopping $360,000 for it, in exchange for someone else to play the starring role.

In the end, the producers begrudgingly played ball with Sly, giving him the chance to play the lead, and $1million to shoot the movie. Stallone would go on to give an Academy Award nominated performance as Rocky Balboa, all while shooting the feature on a ridiculously low budget, aided by bringing in friends and family to play characters and using handheld cameras.

The movie itself would go on to win three Oscars, including Best Picture, but it was Stallone's relentlessness in both getting the film made in the first place and then in making sure he starred as the 'Italian Stallion' that stood out as the real genuinely impressive feat.