“No, look at the film, it looks fantastic. People worked really hard.”

Metro caught up with Stallone and his all-star cast at the film’s Hollywood premiere, where everyone wanted to talk about their humble leader.

“I wanted to work with Stallone again,” says Dolph Lundgren. “I didn’t know who else was going to pile on after me. Everybody else in the action business ended up being in the film.”

Lundgren famously went up against Stallone in “Rocky IV,” and the chance to work with him again was irresistible, he says. “It was 25 years ago last time. I haven’t been in a big film for 15 years, so for me it’s a new experience,” he adds. As for Stallone, Lundgren says, “He hasn’t changed much. He’s gotten a bit older, but he still trains every day.”

For former wrestling star “Stone Cold” Steve Austin, being a part of the film was a dream come true — even if he couldn’t get the part he wanted. “I found the bad news out that Sly had already cast all the Expendables,” he says. Instead, Stallone brought him in as Paine, a chief villain. “Don’t get me wrong, it would’ve been really cool to be one of the Expendables and a good guy,” Austin says. “But I’ve loved being a bad guy my whole life."

Almost mortal combat

Austin admits that some of the fight scenes got a little too rough sometimes — including the day he almost did their director in. “I ended up breaking Sly’s neck,” Austin says. “I’ve told him I was sorry a hundred times already. I never knew I broke his neck until a few months later when he had it fixed. He’s a tough guy.”

Stallone insists there are no hard feelings, but Austin would still love to buy him a beer. “I don’t know if he drinks beer. The guy’s a fitness fanatic,” Austin says. “But I’ll dang sure buy him a beer if he wants one.”

NED EHRBAR [email protected]