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Sylvester Stallone is not dead - at least that’s what he says

February 20, 2018
Sylvester Stallone
Sylvester Stallone

LOS ANGELES - Sylvester Stallone is alive.

The actor and his brother Frank Stallone both took to social media on Tuesday to reassure the world of this fact after a hoax began circulating on Facebook and Twitter that claimed the actor had died at the age of 71 following a battle with prostate cancer, reports The Washington Post.

The hoax, the origin of which is unclear, was fairly transparent - Stallone has been steadily working, recently appearing in an episode of “This Is Us” and filming several upcoming movies, according to IMDb.

Perhaps that’s why he seemed to brush it off in an Instagram post.

“Please ignore this stupidity,” he wrote in the post, “Alive and well and happy and healthy.”

“Still punching!” he added, referring to his most famous character, the boxer Rocky Balboa.

His younger brother, musician Frank Stallone, had far harsher words for whoever started the hoax.

“Rumors that my brother is dead are false. What kind of sick demented cruel mind thinks of things like this to post? People like this are mentally deranged and don’t deserve a place in society,” he wrote on Twitter, adding, “I’m very protective of my older brother and I don’t find any humor in this fake post today on my brothers demise. It upset my 96 yr old mother so I’m doubly upset. I just can’t understand what makes these sick minded people tick?”

This marks at least the second time that false rumors of Stallone’s death circulated online. The first time, in September 2016, a fake CNN report of his supposed “death” appeared on Twitter, as NME reported at the time.

That shouldn’t be too surprising. The actor is far from the first person to be a victim of a celebrity death hoax. They’ve been around for ages. In 1966, a small swath of rock fans claimed Paul McCartney died and was replaced by a look-alike.

The rise of social media has made the spreading of such rumors easier. It’s become a common Internet prank. Among the celebrity targets of an online death hoax: Betty White, Jack Black, Robert Redford, Macaulay Culkin, Queen Elizabeth II and Jackie Chan. - Agencies


February 20, 2018
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