10 More Movies That Did Crazy Things When They Ran Out Of Money

7. The Producers Remortgaged Their Homes - Rocky

Deadpool Ryan Reynolds.jpg
MGM

When Sylvester Stallone was first shopping Rocky around to studios, United Artists offered him $325,000 for the screenplay, with plans to produce it on a $2 million budget.

But when Stallone insisted that he also play the lead role, despite United Artists planning to cast a name actor, the studio agreed with the provision that the budget be slashed by half.

And moreover, any financial overages would be covered by producers Irwin Winkler and Robert Chartoff.

Ultimately Rocky ended up costing $1.1 million, with Winkler and Chartoff raising the additional $100,000 overspill by remortgaging their homes.

It was certainly a bold gamble, but also one of the smartest in the history of Hollywood, given that Rocky went on to gross an eye-watering $225 million globally and kickstart a still-ongoing franchise that made Stallone, Winkler, and Chartoff all incredibly wealthy.

In this post: 
Deadpool
 
First Posted On: 
Contributor
Contributor

Stay at home dad who spends as much time teaching his kids the merits of Martin Scorsese as possible (against the missus' wishes). General video game, TV and film nut. Occasional sports fan. Full time loon.