Seth Rogen fires up the Stallone vs Schwarzenegger showdown — who actually wins?

Here we go again—someone's gone and kicked the hornet's nest of 80s and 90s action hero fandom. Seth Rogen, a bloke never particularly shy about his opinions, has apparently decided Sylvester Stallone's illustrious career boils down to only a handful of watchable films. Think about that for a second. Fewer good Stallone movies than you can count on one hand. This all unfolded on Ike Barinholtz's 'Funny You Ask' podcast, where the two seemed oddly eager to poke the bear and push Sly off his cinematic pedestal.

Rogen vs. Stallone (and Rocky)

On the show, Rogen and Barinholtz took turns trying to one-up each other over how underwhelmed they supposedly are by Stallone's back catalogue. According to Rogen, the man has "something like four good movies," with 'Demolition Man' topping his particular list of essentials. For the record, 'Tango & Cash' made the cut as "enjoyable" but Rogen wouldn't class it as actually good. Barinholtz put the over/under for actual quality Sly films at, you guessed it, four.

But Rogen really went for the jugular with this beauty:

"I don't give a shit about any Rocky movies because they're f**kin' sports movies."

Right, because when you think of genre-defining classic cinema, you obviously wouldn't include 'Rocky,' would you? Sure, just like 'The Shawshank Redemption' is nothing but a prison flick and 'The Godfather' is your average gangster yarn. Bit of a stretch, if you ask me—a great film transcends its genre, and 'Rocky' is textbook proof.

The Arnie Argument

The chaps didn't stop there. They proceeded to crown Arnold Schwarzenegger the far superior star, rattling off his game-changing run: 'Terminator 2: Judgment Day,' 'True Lies,' and 'Predator.' Barinholtz even claimed that 'Predator' alone is "better than anything Sly ever made." Sorry, but no—'Predator' is brilliant, but let's not pretend 'Rocky' and 'First Blood' aren't absolute heavyweights in their own right.

This Old Chestnut: Stallone vs. Schwarzenegger

Naturally, this all drags the age-old debate back into the spotlight: who actually deserves the action movie crown? In their prime, Sly and Arnie spent a decade in a near-constant rivalry—one climbing the box office while the other hit a rough patch, then switching roles, dodging and weaving like they were in their own on-screen slugfests. They fully leaned into the banter, even taking shots at each other in their films.

For the record, they've patched things up since. These days they're mates, popping up together in three 'Expendables' films plus the weirdly entertaining 'Escape Plan.' Never a bad word between them—though I do sometimes wonder if Stallone's truly forgiven Arnie for tricking him into making 'Stop, or My Mom Will Shoot.' Hardly a career highlight.

Filmographies Head-to-Head

If we're being honest, picking a definitive winner is a proper headache. On one hand, you've got Schwarzenegger's titanic contributions to sci-fi and action—he's top-billed in both 'Terminator' films, 'Predator,' 'Total Recall,' 'True Lies,' plus he somehow made 'Twins' work as a comedy. On the other side, Stallone's stamped his mark with the long-running 'Rocky' franchise—one of the great character arcs in cinema history—plus 'First Blood,' 'Cliffhanger,' 'Demolition Man' and a handful of other bangers.

For what it's worth, if you stack up Stallone's entire output, I'd argue he wipes the floor with the combined work of Rogen and Barinholtz—just saying.

The Showdown: Stallone or Schwarzenegger?

• Sylvester Stallone: Best known for the 'Rocky' series, 'First Blood,' 'Cliffhanger,' 'Demolition Man,' 'Tango & Cash,' 'The Expendables,' and more.
• Arnold Schwarzenegger: Famous for 'Terminator,' 'Terminator 2: Judgment Day,' 'Total Recall,' 'Predator,' 'True Lies,' 'Commando,' and 'Twins.'

The two have had ups and downs, traded blows at the box office, and even though fans love to pit them against each other, the reality is they're both legends in their own right.

There's a poll below. No matter which camp you're in, have your say.