Sylvester Stallone Defends Daughter Scarlet’s ‘Tulsa King’ Role: ‘Of Course It’s Nepotism’

One of Hollywood's most enduring action stars has a blunt message for anyone crying favoritism. He insists that giving his children a head start is simply what any loving parent would do.

Sylvester Stallone is not shying away from nepotism allegations after his daughter, Scarlet Rose Stallone, landed a recurring part in Taylor Sheridan's western comedy-drama series "Tulsa King," in which he stars.

The actor, 80, plays Dwight "The General" Manfredi, a mafia lieutenant sent to Oklahoma after his release from prison. Scarlet, 24, has portrayed stablehand Spencer since the show's debut and is set to take on an expanded role in the ongoing fourth season.

Stallone addressed critics of Scarlet's casting in a recent interview with USA Today, published on October 16. "First they go, 'Nepotism is terrible.' I said, 'Oh please, you're not a good parent if you haven't performed a little nepotism,'" he said.

"'Then obviously you don't care about your kids, because they come first,'" he continued. "'Of course it's nepotism, you idiot. That's why we're parents. We want the best for our children. So obviously we let them have every advantage.'"

Still, the screen legend made it clear that while he helped Scarlet get her foot in the door, staying in Hollywood is up to her. "Can they maintain that level of excellence? That's out of our hands," Stallone acknowledged.

"But if you can open the door, we'll see if they have the ability to go through it. People will say, 'She got that job, it's too easy.' You're right. Perhaps it could be. But to maintain that, to be in front of millions of people, you either got it or you don't," he said.

Scarlet is one of three daughters Stallone shares with his wife, Jennifer Flavin, alongside Sophia, 30, and Sistine, 28. Stallone also welcomed two sons with his ex-wife, Sasha Czack: Seargeoh, 47, and Sage, who died in 2012 at age 36.

In an interview ahead of her dad's remarks, Scarlet said that working alongside the iconic actor has "completely changed" their relationship. "Before, he was working constantly, so getting to work together for once is just an amazing opportunity," she explained.

She continued, "We've grown as friends. We've really become friends. We really got to know one another and really respect each other throughout this whole process, through the ups and downs."

The rising star also revealed that her famous father enjoys teasing her on set.

"He completely teases me," she said. "He's really prone to pronouncing every single word, and he's very old-school with his language. And obviously, I'm Gen Z. So I can see him in the back mouthing the words like that.

"And then I look at him, and I go, 'If I talked like that, I would look like your age. I can't talk like that,'" she joked. "But we really laugh with each other, and we make fun of one another sometimes. It's the best experience ever."

Scarlet also opened up about her character's growing storyline, sharing that she felt both "ecstatic" and "terrified" when she learned the news.

"I was ecstatic when I found out. I was honestly so excited. I was also terrified, and I just wanted to make everyone proud," she said. "At the end of the day, I just wanted to work as hard as possible and make everyone proud."