Dolph Lundgren on Living with Stallone, Wild Times with Grace Jones & Why He Is Grateful for Cancer

Adam Carolla (0:00)

In this episode, Dolph Lundgren, that's right, I must break you. He's back.

Also, Dawson's got the news, and we'll do all that right after this.

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Mike Dawson (1:20)

From Carolla One Studios in Glendale, California, this is The Adam Carolla Show. Adam's guest today, Dolph Lundgren.

Plus the news with me, Mike Dawson, and now, Adam Carolla. Yeah, get it on.

Adam Carolla (1:34)

Got to get on the show to get on, manic it on. Dolph Lundgren back in the studio. He's got a book, Fights Worth Fighting, Finding Strength In Struggle, and that's coming out real soon, September 22nd. But pre-order, you always pre-order, and it'll arrive when the book comes out. That's what I found from writing books. And also the documentary, Dolph Unbreakable, which should be out somewhere around early October, and it's wherever you find finer documentaries. Everywhere. I love a documentary.

Dolph's story is great, interesting, can be heartbreaking, lots of highs and lows, but a pretty well-lived life, I would say. Would you trade it?

Dolph Lundgren (2:22)

No, no. Nice to be around him. No, I wouldn't actually.

You know, when you're in the midst of it, sometimes you feel that way, but no. I think we were given our various lives for a reason, and we have to fulfill that reason, you know, the purpose.

Adam Carolla (2:37)

I know you had a pretty tough upbringing. Also, I think you are a person, or I almost want to say poster child, but when we see people on TV or in movies at the height of their powers, looking amazing, you just, we look at these people and they go, we think, not a care in the world, you know, just touched by the hand of God, you know, everywhere you drive, the lights just turn green and you just blow right through, but they don't think about the kind of childhood that you had growing up, right?

Dolph Lundgren (3:12)

No, you're right. I'm the same. It's hard to see behind the mask, you know, of a star, but obviously the really, really famous people like Elvis Presley or Michael Jackson or, you know, Marilyn Monroe, I mean, that you could, you know, obviously, you can also be quite destructive. You know, I think that in my case, it's been, it's been a good ride. I, you know, I've had been very lucky. I started out in little Sweden. My dad was very abusive towards me, my mom. So I had that kind of trauma, which a lot of guys who end up in contact sports have, football, boxing, Navy Seals, you know, all of those dudes, military, police, force.

I had the same thing and it drove me to become a fighter and later an actor.

Adam Carolla (4:03)

You know, it's, it's kind of interesting as I was looking at your story and we talked about it in the book. But, you know, when I was watching the Schwarzenegger documentary, I was kind of like, I think there's a lot of parallels here. Arnold was, you know, he's older, did it earlier. But grew up in a small place, there was no celebrity, had an abusive dad, some alcoholism there, used his physicalness to get out as a way out. You know, came here, had an accent, probably no one thought of him as being an actor. He was all, it was, but he was the muscles guy.

I mean, in a way, there's a lot of parallels there, isn't there?

Dolph Lundgren (4:48)

Yeah, there are, yeah. From a small country, Austria and Sweden, they're both small. He had a tough dad. I believe he was a police officer.