‘Rebel’: Sylvester Stallone’s First Starring Role Set for Re-Release!!

Before Rocky, before Rambo, there was Rebel. The 1971 thriller was Sylvester Stallone‘s first starring role, and it’s been unavailable in any form for over twenty years. Now, it’s been remastered in 4K and will be coming to theaters and on-demand. It will be re-released on June 7, 2025.

Seize the Time!, a film about a group of student activists who turn to violence, was directed by Robert Allen Schnitzer; he also co-wrote the script with Larry Beinhart, whose novel American Hero would later be adapted into the film Wag the Dog. It was filmed in New York City and starred a cast of unknown actors, including Stallone. It was eventually released in 1973 as No Place to Hide. When Stallone became an international sensation following the release of Rocky in 1976, Schnitzer recut the film to focus more on Stallone‘s character, retitling and re-releasing it as Rebel. In 1990, it was again recut, this time as a comedy, as A Man Called…Rainbo. Schnitzer withdrew the film from distribution in 2000, but has now had the film remastered into his definitive director’s cut, which will be released on-demand and in select theaters on June 6.

What Is ‘Rebel’ About?

Stallone stars as Jerry Savage, a student anti-war activist; he and his compatriots have begun targeting companies that supply Central American dictators with weapons. They’ve recruited Marlena St. James, a notorious terrorist and bomber, to help them, but that’s also put the FBI on their trail. Meanwhile, Jerry is pursuing a romance with a sweet-natured hippie girl, and is pondering the necessity of violence. What none of them know, however, is that there’s a traitor in their midst, and it could spell doom for all of them.

As a struggling actor in the early 1970s, Stallone had bit parts in films like Downhill Racer, Klute, and M*A*S*H, and even starred in a softcore porn film, The Party at Kitty and Stud’s; like No Place to Hide, it was retitled (as Italian Stallion) and re-released to capitalize on Rocky‘s success. Stallone‘s first hit was The Lords of Flatbush; his connection with co-star Henry Winkler got him the access to get his script for Rocky made, even though he was initially impeded by his insistence that he would also star in the film.