They’re chips off the old Rock — as in Sylvester “Rocky” Stallone — and they’re ready to step out from their father’s immense shadow to bask in the Hollywood limelight themselves: The Stallone sister sirens will be splitting Miss Golden Globe duties at Sunday’s freewheeling awards ceremony. (More on what that entails here.)
The eldest, Sophia, was born to the 70-year-old action-movie star and his model wife, Jennifer Flavin, in 1996. Then came the sequels: Sistine, 18, and Scarlet, 14. Sistine — whose wide-set eyes most evoke her father’s looks — signed last year with IMG Models; she’s since strutted her stuff on the Dolce & Gabbana catwalk and pouted for the cover of Town & Country. Sophia, the bookish daughter, attends the University of Southern California, where she recently switched from art history to a communications major. Soft-spoken Scarlet is the athlete of the group, a track-and-field star at St. Paul the Apostle School in Westwood (her father frequently posts about “The Flash” on Twitter and Instagram). It’s been a dizzying few weeks for the touchy-feely trio, who tend to finish one another’s sentences and who so charmed Hollywood Foreign Press Association president Lorenzo Soria at last year’s ceremony that he offered the coveted slot to all three — a Golden Globe Awards first. The Hollywood Reporter sat down with the siblings at their recent cover shoot to talk early Rocky memories, their dad’s political ambitions and the perks of the Miss Golden Globe gig. All agree that meeting Jimmy Fallon will be a “bucket list” moment. And, hey, if they happen to get some face time with Ryan Gosling, that’ll be the icing on the cake. “This is the first time without our parents by our side,” says Sistine. “The way we behave is a reflection of the Golden Globes. We need to be responsible and mature.”
How did this all come together?
Sistine: [The HFPA] talked to our dad about it. He won last year [for best supporting actor in Creed], so that put us on their radar. We were all actually at the Golden Globes last year. The whole family went. I don’t think I’ve ever seen something like that on a Golden Globes red carpet.
Sophia: None of us were planning on going — but Sistine’s friend’s grandma used to be the president of the Hollywood Foreign Press. She was able to get us all some tickets at the last minute. We were scrambling! Scarlet wore my friend’s old prom dress, I wore my mom’s vintage gown.
And then your father won.
Sistine: He won. And for all of us to be there, hysterically crying on each other, it was emotionally overwhelming. It’s such an indescribable moment to see such a well-deserved accomplishment finally come to him.
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And a nice trophy bookend for the role that started it all.
Sistine: It was such a good tribute to Rocky.
Sophia: And we’ve been there since, from what we can remember, [2006’s] Rocky Balboa.
What’s your earliest memory of your dad as a movie star?
Sistine: I don’t think we really realized he “was” Rocky until that [Golden Globe-winning] moment.
Sophia: The earliest movie of his I remember was [2001’s] Driven. We were on set for that.
Sistine: We were so young and naive — we just thought it was our dad doing something weird. People would attack him and ask for autographs, and we’d just think, “He’s just our dad. He’s not that cool.” But now we realize he’s such a prominent figure in Hollywood. It’s amazing.
When did you first see Rocky?
Sistine: We were very little. Every time it’s on TV, he makes us watch it again.
Sophia: He’ll explain things to us we didn’t understand before.
What does being Miss Golden Globe mean to you?
Sophia: Except for Sistine, we’ve never really been in the public eye. Everyone else who has famous parents, they’re always in the public eye. But my mom was very about education, staying grounded, family — we always eat dinner together.
Sistine: We were trying to keep our private lives private.
Sophia: Until we were old enough to handle it.
Scarlet: And so this is our moment: the Golden Globes.
Any apprehensions about your new life in the public eye?
Sophia: Well, we did grow up with it, sort of. We’ve done red carpet whenever our dad had a premiere.
Sistine: But this was the first time when they asked questions about us.
Sophia: We’ve grown up looking up our names on the internet. You’ll find thousands of baby photos of us — some we’ve never even seen. So we are kind of used to it.
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Scarlet, as the youngest, do you feel more pressure?
Scarlet: No, actually, I feel a lot more calm since my sisters are here with me. It’s less attention directly on me.
Sistine: As nerve-wracking as it is, it’s nice to have my best friends at my side to catch me if I fall.
Your closeness as sisters is striking.
Sistine: I’ve never seen such a close sisterhood bond. How we are perceived through paparazzi is really how it is.
Sophia: We talk or text every single day. We’re all very in tune with what’s going on.
My sisters used to fight constantly.
Sophia: We bicker, but it’s sisters.
Scarlet: We make up in five seconds.
The Miss Golden Globe title has led to some big career moves. What are you hoping to get out of it?
Scarlet: I’m only in junior high, so I don’t really know what to expect in the future.
Sophia: I want to be an entrepreneur and run my own fashion and makeup line. I think today it’s all about digital and social media, and so being recognized is a huge asset. Like, Kylie Jenner Lip Kit is blowing up. So getting my face out there is a big part of it.
Sistine: As for me, I don’t think I could ever act. I’m good for modeling because I don’t have to talk. [Acting] is something you’re born with. My mother is a model. I have dreamed about being a model since I was a little girl.
Sophia: I used to love theater and thought I wanted to be an actress. But when I went behind the scenes in the industry, I didn’t mesh well at all. You have to have a certain personality to be an actor in Hollywood. We see the long hours, the rejection. None of it is in your hands.
Your father recently politely declined a position in Donald Trump’s administration running the National Endowment for the Arts. Did he discuss that with you at all?
Sistine: We didn’t communicate about that very well.
Sophia: We actually heard about it through the news.
Sistine: He made a public statement about it, and I read that and learned more from that than I would from him.
How do you feel about his decision?
Sistine: He’s a smart guy. Whatever he does is the right choice. I know he thought about it a lot.
