Around the same time during the 70s, as Mattel’s Barbie dolls rose to global prominence, bringing in their wake all things fashion and feminine, Arnold Schwarzenegger stood atop the Mr. Olympia stage for the first time with a vision that would lay the blueprint of all things Hollywood and masculine.

As Greta Gerwig took on the reigns to create a Barbie extravaganza, she felt it was only right to base her Ken upon the epitome of the “real man” in the 70s. But before you jump the gun and imagine Arnold Schwarzenegger in the rumored Barbie sequel, it is important to note that it was actually his rival who found a seat as an inspiration for the movie.

How Arnold Schwarzenegger’s rival bet him to become the inspiration behind Ken

As the audience neared the day of the Barbie premiere, Greta Gerwig gave fans a runaround by driving them to the top of a pink cliff and leaving them hanging. She has been much kinder in terms of insights and inspiration since the movie broke the glass ceiling at the box office. One such inspiration behind the movie as the doll makes the grueling journey to the real world becomes Sylvester Stallone. In an interview with Uproxx, Greta Gerwig said, “I love Sylvester Stallone.”

It is through her revelation that we realize that Ryan Gosling’s black bandana Ken is not a Rocky fan in a parallel universe but a product of the director and Gosling being Stallone fanboys in this universe itself.

While it may have been a fangirl moment for Gerwig, it earned Sylvester Stallone one crucial point in his rivalry with Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Are Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sylvester Stallone still rivals?

In the tapestry of Hollywood, Schwarzenegger and Stallone’s rivalry has broken the curse of time. It may have started as a simple game of getting the best action-hero role, but it evolved into something worse along the way. But fortunately, all those years of playing hero also taught the Austrian Oak and the Rocky star to trample the biggest of monsters: hatred. Since then, the two legends have come to celebrate each other.

While they have become great friends, given the decades of their rivalry, it is hard to think they have discarded their scoreboard. Even if they have, as Sylvester Stallone becomes the “real man” for Barbie, wherever the board is, it currently reads: Arnold Schwarzenegger:100 and Sylvester Stallone: 101.

Did you notice the references made to Arnold Schwarzenegger’s frenemy, Sylvester Stallone in Barbie? Let us know in the comments below.