Sylvester Stallone stars as an uprooted gangster who’s served 25 years behind bars and is fresh out of prison in the new TV crime drama Tulsa King on Paramount Plus.
The Rocky and Rambo star plays Brooklyn-born Mafia member, Dwight ‘The General’ Manfredi, who upon his release from jail finds himself despatched by his mobster boss to the remote city of Tulsa, Oklahoma to set up new criminal operations there.
Dwight is like a fish out of water as he’s forced to navigate a completely different environment and interact with locals who he soon recruits into his unlikely new ‘mob.’
The nine-part series is Stallone’s first major TV role and was created by Oscar-nominated US writer Taylor Sheridan (Sicario, Hell or High Water, Yellowstone) along with writer and producer Terence Winter (The Sopranos, Boardwalk Empire).
We spoke to Sly to hear why it was a dream come true for him to be part of the gang…
This is your first TV lead role. How did it come about?
Sylvester Stallone: "I met Taylor (Sheridan) a while back, it was actually while riding horses in California. He was working on Sicario at the time and I wanted him to write the screenplay for Rambo because I was getting lazy! Anyway he went on to become very successful with his TV series Yellowstone and one day he called me up, pitched Tulsa King to me and within three seconds I went, 'I’m in!'"
You’ve been in so many successful films but how did you find working on your first big TV project?
"It's harder, faster, and longer. You really have to be quick and mercurial, working out of sync with sequences. But most importantly, you have to keep your energy up. The amount of time we took to do ten episodes of Tulsa King is the equivalent of doing five Rockys in a row with no break. So I had great respect for the crew in their diligence and endurance."
What appealed to you most about starring in Tulsa King?
"Acting in a gangster world has been a fantasy of mine ever since I was rejected in 1970 to be one of the 200 extras who basically stood behind a wedding cake in a scene from The Godfather. I never thought it would happen but everything comes to those who wait! What I really love about this is it’s showing someone who is not your stereotypical mobster. Dwight is completely out of his element. His new ‘gang’ becomes one made up of cowboys, Indians, women and a fella that runs a weed store. They are a group of complete misfits but who somehow fit together as a family. That’s what makes it so unusual."
What can you tell us about Dwight when we first meet him?
"He’s a man who all his life has been very loyal to the Mafia code. He’s kept his mouth shut about mob activities for the entire 25 years he was behind bars so when he comes out he’s expecting to be rewarded for that. Instead, he’s sent to this place he has absolutely no clue about. Suddenly he’s in the middle of these corn fields with cowboys everywhere. It’s a completely alien landscape to him."
How would you describe his personality?
"He’s a very different man now from when he first went into prison. He’s extremely well-read and very educated. He’s basically spent the last 25 years behind bars reading every day and is into Machiavelli, Plato and the classics. He’s not your typical gangster."
Have you met any real gangsters in your life?
"Half my family are gangsters (laughing), at least they’re robbing me! No, I’m only kidding. I grew up around a lot of these mugs in Philadelphia and you’re bumping shoulders with them whether or not you want to, especially in South Philly. So I’ve got the idea, the attitude, I understand the street life very well."
What do hope viewers will take away from watching Tulsa King?
"I hope they take away Jay’s wardrobe! (Sly’s co-star Jay Will who plays Tyson in the series). I never want to see those clothes again! I hope people enjoy a very different interpretation of a so-called mob family. It has heart, energy and humor. What more can you ask for?"
Tulsa King premieres on Sunday, November 13, on Paramount Plus in the US and Canada and on Monday, 14 November in the UK and Australia on the streaming service.
