Actor Sylvester Stallone says he learned of his appointment as one of President Trump’s special ambassadors to Hollywood the same way most of the country did: watching television.
Days before Trump’s second inauguration in January 2025, the president posted on Truth Social that he was naming Stallone, Mel Gibson and Jon Voight as “Special Envoys” tasked with serving as his “eyes and ears” in the entertainment industry and advising him on bringing film and television production back to the United States.
Stallone, 80, told The Sunday Times he had no advance warning. “I was watching TV one night, and they go, ‘So Stallone and Mel Gibson and Jon Voight will be …’ And I went, ‘What?’ I said, ‘Excuse me? Really?’ Because if they had asked me in the beginning, I would have said, ‘This is not possible,'” he said.
The Rocky star said he doubted the role could work at all, comparing the film industry’s power structure to a patchwork of small fiefdoms. “Hollywood, I guess it’s like feudal states,” Stallone said. “They have their little kingdoms. You don’t go in and tell six studios how to do things. And Mel Gibson and Jon Voight, we’re kind of do-our-own-thing people. No, it won’t work.”
Stallone said he eventually told Trump directly that he wasn’t cut out for the assignment. “I said thank you and ciao, because it’s impossible,” he said. “Hollywood works, and it will evolve. It’s corporate, and corporate people won’t want to hear me tell them about finance.”
What Trump Announced
In his Jan. 16, 2025 Truth Social post, Trump wrote: “It is my honor to announce Jon Voight, Mel Gibson, and Sylvester Stallone, to be Special Ambassadors to a great but very troubled place, Hollywood, California.” He added that the three would be his “eyes and ears” and pledged to act on their suggestions to restore “The Golden Age of Hollywood.”
Gibson, 70, said at the time he was just as surprised as everyone else. “I got the tweet at the same time as all of you and was just as surprised,” he told Variety in January 2025. “Nevertheless, I heed the call. My duty as a citizen is to give any help and insight I can.” He joked, “Any chance the position comes with an Ambassador’s residence?”
A Friendly Relationship Despite the Skepticism
Stallone’s doubts about the ambassador role haven’t stopped him from praising Trump publicly. Days after Trump’s November 2024 election win, Stallone introduced him at the America First Policy Institute Gala at Mar-a-Lago, calling him “a really mythical character” and comparing him to George Washington. “Nobody in the world could have pulled off what he pulled off, so I’m in awe,” Stallone said.
Trump later named Stallone a 2025 Kennedy Center honoree, alongside George Strait, KISS, Gloria Gaynor and Michael Crawford. Stallone’s political giving has not been strictly partisan; he has donated to Republicans including John McCain and Trump as well as to Democratic candidates and committees, including Joe Biden and the DNC.
Voight Takes the Lead
Of the three envoys, Voight has been the most publicly active, meeting with the White House and pushing for a federal film tax incentive with the help of his manager, Steven Paul, and Paul’s associate Scott Karol.
Following a meeting with the three actors at the end of last month, Trump endorsed a federal production incentive and called on Congress to act. In an Aug. 31 Truth Social post, he wrote that “Hollywood is a Complete and Total Disaster” with “no incentive” for productions to remain in the U.S., and urged lawmakers from both parties to “immediately craft Legislation to save the Movie, Television, and Entertainment Business in America.” Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) and Rep. Laura Friedman (D-Calif.) both voiced support for the idea.
Asked by the Hollywood Reporter this month whether Stallone and Gibson were involved in the push, Voight said, “They’ve been very busy, both of those guys actually have been extremely busy.” Paul, who joined the interview, added: “Sly’s been doing his TV show, but Sly’s been very involved and he signed our letter.”
