Award-winning Rocky actor and action star par excellence Sylvester Stallone gushed praise for Vice President J.D. Vance during a recent interview, calling him a genuine and compelling individual who can take the reins of the Make America Great Again movement created by President Donald Trump. Stallone made his comments while attending the reception for the 2025 Kennedy Center Honors last weekend, where he and several other honorees received recognition from the president for their contributions to the arts and American culture.
When Stallone was asked if he believed Vance was the right guy to take over for Trump when his second term ends in 2028, he wasted no time saying, “Oh, without a doubt.” The Rambo star called Vance an “elegant man,” recounting an interaction with the vice president, who he said was “quite generous in his words to me and to my family,” even though “he didn’t have to be.”
The action-movie legend said the kind words weren’t something he was expecting, meaning he — unlike most celebrities — didn’t feel the vice president needed to kiss up to him or owed him anything. “There’s something about when you look at a man eye-to-eye,” Stallone continued, describing Vance as “authentic” and not someone “posturing for a different idea.”
Stallone then pointed to the bestselling book Vance wrote long before his foray into politics, Hillbilly Elegy, saying, “Look at the book he wrote — talk about humble beginnings.” If you haven’t read the book or watched the movie it inspired, what are you doing with your life? It’s a great film with emotional heft that explores the complexities many working-class families experience, detailing his family’s struggles with alcoholism, poverty, and abuse.
Vance, like Trump, is someone the average American can relate to. He’s been through hardship. He understands those who are destitute and struggling, while still maintaining strong conservative values and championing the free market system. What better person to take over the movement after the president has served his term?
According to a report from Breitbart News:
Stallone’s praise comes amid increasing national attention on JD Vance as a key figure in the future of the Republican Party. Vance, serving as both vice president and Finance Chairman of the Republican National Committee, has emerged as a frontrunner for 2028, with a recent New Hampshire poll showing him commanding 57 percent support among likely Republican voters.
President Trump has publicly fueled this notion in recent months. During a cabinet meeting at the White House, Trump hinted that members of his current administration — specifically Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio — could comprise the next Republican presidential ticket. Trump described such a pairing as “unstoppable” and said he wanted their work to be “carried forward.” That echoed earlier remarks made during a flight to Japan in which Trump again floated the idea of a Vance-Rubio 2028 ticket and praised both men’s leadership.
Stallone also has strong, positive feelings about President Trump, calling him the “second George Washington” during a speech he gave at Mar-a-Lago. He’s been friends with Trump for years and was appointed by the president as one of three actors — along with Jon Voight and Mel Gibson — to serve as Special Envoys to “restore the Golden Age of Hollywood.”
Sylvester Stallone spoke about President Trump and Vice President JD Vance tonight at the Kennedy Center Honors in Washington DC.
. pic.twitter.com/0nqjTfQz0P— Paul Villarreal (AKA Vince Manfeld) (@AureliusStoic1) December 8, 2025
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