The Demolition Man Stunt That Almost Killed Stallone — And Why He Still Wants a Sequel

Despite Sylvester Stallone calling Demolition Man one of the most dangerous sets he’s ever worked on, with two stunts nearly killing him, he’s still keen on returning for a sequel. So why hasn’t it happened yet?

The Two Stunts That Could Have Killed Stallone for Real

Before CGI took over Hollywood, Stallone was performing a lot of his own stunts and risking his neck for real. Speaking to GQ in December 2025 while revisiting his most famous roles over the years, Stallone admitted the 1993 sci-fi action movie featured “the two most dangerous stunts I’ve ever done.”

The first involved Detective John Spartan getting grabbed by a giant robotic claw. Stallone explains that the hydraulics kept malfunctioning. “Sometimes the hydraulics would go sideways, and the strength of those metal claws would tear you up,” he said in the interview.

Then came the freezing scene, where Spartan gets sealed inside a clear tube while liquid rises around him. Stallone says the production filled the container with warm oil while the thick plexiglass lid was bolted shut. “When they froze me originally, and they put me in this round tub. Thick plexiglass, you couldn’t break it with a sledgehammer. And they started pouring in warm oil, and it’s filling up, filling up to here [gestures to chin]. It’s supposed to cut. If it goes longer than 30 seconds, it’s gonna go to here [gestures to nose], and you can’t get out because the lid was bolted on,” he said. If the crew missed the cue to stop, he was trapped.

To make things worse, the emergency plan involved two guys standing nearby with sledgehammers and hatchets to crack it open. Stallone later challenged them to try after filming. After twenty tries, they failed. “And I had a couple of fellas that were sitting there with sledgehammers and hatchets. And I go, now that the scene is over, why don’t you try to open it? And of course they hit it 20 times, couldn’t crack it. So that was crazy,” Stallone explained, looking genuinely terrified.

The Movie That Should Have Made Stallone a Franchise King

Forget about Rambo and Rocky, because Stallone’s best role was as Sergeant John Spartan in Demolition Man. It’s been nearly 33 years since the Marco Brambilla-directed feature was released, and it’s shocking that Demolition Man 2 (which should see Stallone and Wesley Snipes return) hasn’t happened yet.

Sylvester Stallone versus Wesley Snipes in a futuristic action movie. That premise alone is enough to send the audience into a frenzy—and it did in 1993. Making almost $160 million from a reported $77 million budget and receiving 60% approval on Rotten Tomatoes, it did the business at the box office and satisfied the pesky critics in one go. Basically, it was a smash hit.

More importantly, the audience loved Demolition Man. It’s an action film that’s constantly revisited and celebrated nearly three decades later, and even Dennis Rodman couldn’t help but imitate Simon Phoenix’s electric hair at the time.

The Sequel That’s Been 30 Years in the Making

The original writers had already mapped out the plans for a sequel. Speaking to Vulture, screenwriter Daniel Waters revealed that Spartan had a daughter. But because he was cryogenically frozen, she would actually be older than him in the timeline.

So, why didn’t a sequel ever happen? In 1995, there was talk about Demolition Man 2, but it never went anywhere. Then, in 2006, Stallone said that he feared the ship for it had long since sailed.

In 2020, Stallone changed his tune, revealing on his Instagram account that a sequel was in active development. “We’re working on it right now with Warner Bros. It’s looking fantastic. So, that should come out, that’s going to happen,” he said.

Of course, until the actors physically appear on set, anything can happen in showbiz. Hollywood is notorious for saying one thing and doing another, and with all the constant shake-up at Warner Bros. it’s possible that Demolition Man 2 could get canned before it sees the light of day.

So Where the Hell Is Demolition Man 2?

Considering Stallone’s clout in the industry, he is certainly someone who can get movies made. It also helps that Demolition Man has been in the public consciousness in the last few years, with its contact-free high-fives making people wonder if the film accurately predicted the future of society.

Undoubtedly, with all the buzz around the original movie and Stallone being comfortable enough to announce it on social media, it must mean that we’re closer to seeing Demolition Man 2 than ever before. It’s been a long wait, but hey, we might finally get an explanation on how the three seashells work pretty soon. With Wesley Snipes’ Blade gaining renewed popularity in Deadpool & Wolverine, now could be the perfect moment for Stallone to make it happen.