Sylvester Stallone says "something snapped" inside him when he watched an Italian movie from the 50s.

The action star credits epic fantasy feature film Hercules Unchained for inspiring him to pursue an acting career. Sylvester looked up to the star of the film, actor Steve Reeves, and saw him as a role model during the teen years of his life.

"When I saw Hercules unchained something snapped in me," he told Cover Media. "At last I had a real male role model, it meant a lot when I was a skinny boy. Also Kirk Douglas in The Vikings was a role model to me."

Sylvester also spoke about the impact he and Arnold Schwarzenegger have had on the movie industry. He claims they shaped the action movie genre into what it is today.

"You have to remember, before me and Arnie there wasn't an action movie genre." He explained.