The most famous 1970s action heroes who look completely transformed today - who do you recognise?

Sylvester Stallone is one of the most famous action stars of all time, with the 80-year-old still appearing in major films, including The Expendables franchise, the Guardians of the Galaxy movies and Tulsa King. But in the 1970s, the star was best known as Rocky Balboa, the face of the Rocky films.

In the original 1976 film, Rocky is a small-time club fighter who gets the opportunity to compete in the big leagues when he takes on world champion fighter Apollo Creed, who was played by Carl Weathers. The rags-to-riches story gripped the world and helped to spawn a global franchise, while also making Sylvester the go-to action hero, with the star dominating the 1980s with hits like First Blood and Cobra.

Sylvester, who is now a Special Ambassador to Hollywood, would likely lose now if he went up against his famous character, but the star is still well-built and would likely offer up a good fight before he went down.

Mel Gibson had only had two film roles before he landed the part of Max Rockatansky in the dystopian action hit Mad Max, which launched a franchise that continues to this day. During the 80s, Mel became known for his buddy cop action series alongside Martin Riggs, Lethal Weapon.

The 70-year-old remains in fine fighting form, still regularly appearing at conventions and movie premieres, although these days he prefers a sharp tuxedo over the leather outfits used in Mad Max.

"Do I feel lucky? Well, do you, punk?" is one of the most iconic lines ever uttered in an action film, and it came from Clint Eastwood's Dirty Harry, which was released at the start of the decade. The runaway success of the film led to four sequels, which were released between 1973 and 1988.

Clint, 96, was already known for his action roles, thanks to his genre-defining performances as The Man With No Name in the Dollars trilogy, and also starred in the likes of Heartbreak Ridge, In the Line of Fire and Cry Macho. The star has continued to work late into his life, although more as a director than as an action hero.

James Bond was established as a cinematic icon in the 1960s with Sean Connery taking on the role, but for the majority of the 1970s, it was Roger Moore who played the suave spy. During his time on screen, he twice foiled plots to wipe out humanity, while also engaging in the classic espionage that fans love from the series.

Roger continued to act for several decades after hanging up his Walther PKK, starring in Bed & Breakfast, The Quest, Boat Trip and even Spice World. He died on 23 May 2017 at the age of 89 due to liver and lung cancer.

Back in 1971, the actor to be was Gene Hackman, thanks to his starring role in The French Connection as Jimmy "Popeye" Doyle, a cop who attempts to take down a drug smuggling ring. The film won five Oscars and established Gene as a major star, leading to him featuring in films like Unforgiven, Bonnie and Clyde and the Superman movies.

Gene died at the age of 95 in February 2025. The bodies of him and his wife, Betsy Arakawa, were discovered on 26 February 2025. It was established that Betsy died from hantavirus on 11 February, with Gene likely passing away a week later due to heart disease and Alzheimer's.

Burt Reynolds was one of Hollywood's most bankable stars by the end of the 1970s, thanks in part to some of the major action films he starred in, including White Lightning, Smokey and the Bandit and Hooper. White Lightning was released in 1973, and as prisoner-turned-informant Gator McCluskey, Burt won America's hearts.

Alongside starring in other films in the Smokey and the Bandit film series, Burt is also known for Evening Shade, Heat and The Dukes of Hazzard. The actor died at the age of 82 following a heart attack on 6 September 2018.

Charles Bronson used the 1960s to establish himself as a major movie star thanks to the likes of The Magnificent Seven, The Great Escape and The Dirty Dozen. And in the 1970s, he continued his streak, especially with The Mechanic and the highly controversial Death Wish, in which he starred as Paul Kersey, an architect turned vigilante following the brutal murder of his wife.

While Charles remained an action star for the rest of his life, the star sadly passed away at the age of 81 on 30 August 2003.

Steve McQueen was the 'King of Cool' thanks to his history of playing suave and debonair characters throughout the 1960s, but he also had plenty of action roles under his belt, including The Getaway and The Towering Inferno, the latter of which was one of the biggest box office successes of the time.

Steve's life was tragically cut short at the age of 50 when the star was diagnosed with terminal cancer. Although he was warned by doctors that he would not survive a surgery to remove a tumour on his liver, the actor checked into a hospital under a false name; he died of a heart attack 12 hours after the surgery on 7 November 1980.

Due to his close friendship with Bruce Lee, Chuck Norris starred as one of the villains in The Way of the Dragon, before getting some of his breakout action roles in the likes of Breaker! Breaker! and Good Guys Wear Black. The martial arts star became one of the most famous action heroes in the world, even spawning internet memes about his toughness.

In March 2026, Chuck was hospitalised in Hawaii following a medical emergency, and he died at the age of 86 on 19 March.

Richard Roundtree was one of the most consequential stars of the 1970s when he starred as the confident and charismatic John Shaft in the Shaft franchise, which stretched from 1971 until 2019. His role as the private detective is credited with changing how viewers saw Black people in lead roles throughout the decade.

Richard had a flourishing career, thanks to the likes of An Eye for an Eye, The Big Score, Speed Racer and Haunting of the Marie Celeste. Richard died at the age of 81 on 24 October 2023, after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.

It wasn't just the men who dominated the box office as action stars, as Pam Grier also led several blaxploitation action films like Coffy and Foxy Brown. The star's prowess in the films established her as one of the leading stars of the time.

Pam, 77, still looks like she would take no prisoners in an action film, with the actress having a killer look, with her most recent film being Pet Sematary: Bloodlines.