Sylvester Stallone says he's focusing more on family and his wife, Jennifer Flavin, in the wake of high-profile divorce proceedings brought by her after 25 years of marriage, now suspended.
Speaking to USA Today about his starring role in Paramount+'s upcoming streaming series Tulsa King, Stallone said his marriage to Flavin is now "better than ever" and cited career commitments as the main problem that led to the marital strain.
Stallone, 76, vowed he'll focus on loved ones, including Flavin and the couple's three grown daughters.
"We have a beautiful family that now comes first. Whereas before, it was always strained by me going away for months and months at a time. That's now been put on the back backburner," Stallone, sporting his wedding ring during a Zoom interview, says.
Despite the well-documented problems, Stallone insists, "My marriage couldn't be better."
"My wife is a magnificent: a wonderful, super-attentive woman and a great mother," says Stallone. "She's a great companion. So I'm a very lucky man."
While they celebrated their 25th wedding anniversary in May, Stallone took pains to point out during the interview that he and Flavin have been together since meeting in 1988. "Actually, it's been 34 years," he says.
The Rocky star has five children, including three daughters with Flavin: Sophia, 26, Sistine, 24, and Scarlet, 20. (Sons Sage and Seargeoh are from his first marriage with actress Sasha Czack).
The Flavin-Stallone divorce proceedings were halted after an ending order for abatement was filed in the Palm Beach County Circuit Court on Sept. 23, little more than a month after Flavin initiated the proceedings by calling the couple's 25-year marriage "irretrievably broken".
"The Parties agree that it is in the best interests of each of them individually, and more importantly collectively as a family, to resolve all issues attendant to the dissolution of their marriage in a dignified, amicable and private manner out-of-court," the court filing said.
The couple have made a series of joint public appearances, walking arm-in-arm in New York City on Oct 7 and sitting with daughters Sistine and Sophia at an Oct 13 Ralph Lauren fashion show at the Huntington Library, Art Museum and Botanical Gardens in San Marino, California.
Tulsa King features Stallone as a New York City mob capo who is sent to Tulsa, Oklahoma, after serving an extensive prison sentence. Filming for the 10-episode series required extensive shoots, including on location in Tulsa. The Paramount+ series has not yet been renewed for a second season.
Stallone is also stepping away from major film franchises, including Creed which featured a Rocky-less trailer for Creed III last week. Stallone says he'll appear in The Expendables 4 (due in September 2023) but will primarily let Jason Statham's Lee Christmas lead the crew. – USA Today/Tribune News Service
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