Sylvester Stallone Says He ‘Hated’ Dolph Lundgren When He Was Cast In ‘Rocky IV’

It sounds like Sylvester Stallone experienced a sucker punch to his ego when he first met Dolph Lundgren.

Chatting with Jimmy Fallon on Thursday’s “Tonight Show,” Stallone admitted that — even though the two are friends now — he “hated” the Swedish action star the moment he walked in to audition for the role of Ivan Drago in 1985’s “Rocky IV.”

“Let me see if I can relate to you,” Stallone said, recalling why he loathed Lundgren then.

According to the 73-year-old “Rambo” star, when Lundgren, now 61, walked into the room, it was like “all of a sudden the doors open, this smoke comes in and [there’s this] light.”

And according to Mr. Rocky Balboa, that “light” transformed into a 6-foot-5-inch Adonis with wide shoulders, piercing blue eyes and “calves [that] were coming through his clothing.”

“He was like the real Terminator, and I go, ‘I hate this friggin’ guy,’” Stallone said. “He’s just too perfect, too good-looking. And if I loathe him, I’m sure the world will.”

Stallone added: “He’s not really, but he looks like something that’s a thousand years in the future. … This is not a guy you see waiting on your table.”

Although Stallone admitted to being pretty intimidated by the actor hired to play his nemesis in “Rocky IV,” that all seems to be water under the bridge now.

The two reunited as Rocky and Drago in “Creed II,” and Stallone told Fallon he’s working on a “hardcore” United Nations-inspired TV series with Lundgren that he hopes to direct called “The International.” Stallone also said he’s hoping to work with Lundgren for yet another “Expendables” sequel.