Stallone action movies that arrived during the 1980s and 1990s, he tended to be first billed every time. That's why Stallone cameos were rare during this era as he largely avoided ing parts.

In more recent years, Sly has made guest appearances in the Guardians of the Galaxy sequels and Expendables 4 - despite the latter being one of Stallone's major action franchises. Still, there aren't many examples of the star showing up uncredited for a single scene, and the ones that exist are bizarre.

5 Cannonball! (1976)

Directed by Paul Bartel (Eating Raoul)

Before Rocky, Stallone's most famous project was Death Race 2000. This blackly comic action film is set in a bleak future and centers on the titular transcontinental race, where participants earn points from running down civilians. The film has become a cult favorite, with Stallone playing a rare villainous role as "Machine Gun" Joe. He soon reunited with director Paul Bartel for a truly bizarre one-scene appearance in his follow-up, Cannonball!

Playing like a (slightly) more serious Death Race 2000, the film casts David Carradine as the title driver, taking part in a race from L.A. to New York. Stallone's cameo features him and director Martin Scorsese (!) as KFC munching mafioso who menace a character played by Bartel himself. Stallone went uncredited for his Cannonball! cameo, with the film arriving only a few months before Rocky changed his career.

4 Staying Alive (1983)

Directed by Sylvester Stallone

Nearly all the movies directed by Stallone were sequels to his own work. This made him a curious choice to helm the Saturday Night Fever sequel Staying Alive, which involved John Travolta's Tony trading disco for Broadway. Stallone gave himself a silent cameo in Staying Alive as "Man on Street," who Tony bumps into and the two briefly exchange looks.

In short, Stallone's cameo doesn't amount to much, though it's a nice easter egg. On paper, there was a logic to getting Rocky creator Stallone to helm another underdog tale. That said, Staying Alive was far from the "Dance Rocky" Stallone envisioned, and he was miscast as director. The resulting follow-up was a gaudy mess that has aged poorly - though it still grossed over $127 million (via Box Office Mojo).

3 An Alan Smithee Film: Burn Hollywood Burn (1997)

Directed by Alan Smithee (AKA Arthur Hiller)

Long before The Expendables, Burn Hollywood Burn nearly united Stallone, Willis and Schwarzenegger for the first time. At least, that's how Stallone was sold on it. In an AICN Q&A, the star revealed he was told Arnold Schwarzenegger and Bruce Willis were locked in for cameos in the film. It wasn't until he arrived to film his cameo that he learned Jackie Chan and Whoopi Goldberg were playing the other roles instead.

An Alan Smithee Film: Burn Hollywood Burn was intended as a scathing satire of the movie business, and involves a director named Alan Smithee (Eric Idle) stealing a terrible action movie he has helmed. The film has a funny premise that sadly translates into an unfunny chore of a comedy, which unfolds as a fake documentary. To his credit, Stallone commits to sending himself up - but that's not nearly enough to save the film.

2 Taxi 3 (2003)

Directed by Gérard Krawczyk

Stallone's strangest cameo cast him as a Bond-esque thief in the opening sequence of Taxi 3, the third entry in the popular French series. The threequel opens with Stallone's mysterious character hitching a ride with franchise protagonist Daniel (Samy Naceri), who uses his tricked-out car to evade the gang pursuing Stallone's enger. This scene climaxes with Stallone's character getting picked up by a helicopter, which kicks off a 007-inspired title sequence.

It's an amusing, goofy scene, with Stallone's appearance coming as a total surprise to viewers back in 2003. Of course, Stallone doesn't speak French and is dubbed during the prologue by Alain Dorval, who voiced other Stallone outings like First Blood and Stop! Or My Mom Will Shoot.

1 Kambakkht Ishq (2009)

Directed by Sabbir Khan (Adbhut)

Written and directed by Sabbir Khan, the poorly received Bollywood rom-com Kambakkht Ishq features a host of cameos. These include Denise Richard and Brandon Routh, but obviously, the biggest name is Stallone himself. The story follows an Indian stuntman (played by Akshay Kumar) as he makes his way to Hollywood and falls in love with Kareena Kapoor's medical student, Simrita. The two are total opposites, so naturally, sparks fly.

Sylvester Stallone gets two big moments in Kambakkht Ishq, including a fight scene where he rescues Kapoor's Simrita from a gang; he also presents Kumar's character with a stunt award. Still, his cameo isn't nearly enough to recommend the film, which is nowhere near as funny or romantic as it strives to be.