Sylvester Stallone’s family was enjoying an Italian vacation during the ‘Rocky’ star’s encounter with Pope Francis
Sylvester Stallone and Pope Francis jokingly shadowboxed each other at the Apostolic Palace on Friday.
In a video uploaded to X, previously known as Twitter, the head of the Catholic Church can be seen meeting the entire Stallone family.
The “Rocky” star, 77, first introduced his wife, Jennifer Flavin, before introducing his three daughters — Sophia, 27; Sistine, 25; and Scarlet, 21 — as well as his brother, Frank Stallone.
The pope shook everyone’s hand and was heard saying, “Three, so many!” in Italian in response to meeting Stallone’s daughters.
“Thank you very much for taking time from your busy day. We appreciate this very much,” Stallone told Francis. Both men agreed it was an “honor” to meet one another.
“We grew up with your films,” an interpreter told Stallone on behalf of the pope. The actor appeared pleased and laughed before throwing up his iconic “Rocky” stance.
“Ready? We box!” Stallone said before Francis followed suit and got into a boxing stance.
The Vatican shared a press release on Friday that listed everyone the pope was scheduled to meet that day, including Stallone. Francis, who’s been the leader of the Catholic Church since 2013, was also scheduled to meet bishops and an archbishop from around the world.
Although meeting the pope was an honor for the “Creed” actor, it was not his first time visiting the Vatican.