Sylvester Stallone is 'permanently' leaving California behind for Florida: 'It's a done deal'
Sylvester Stallone is "permanently" leaving California and is being welcomed with open arms in Florida.
The "Rocky" icon made the announcement on the season two premiere of the reality show, "The Family Stallone."
"After long, hard consideration, your mother and I have decided, time to move on and leave the state of California permanently, and we’re going to go to Florida," Sylvester told his three daughters: Scarlet, 21, Sistine, 25, and Sophia, 27 – referring to his wife of 26 years, Jennifer Flavin.
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He added, "We're gonna sell this house. We already have the place, it's a done deal."
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis' wife, Casey DeSantis, welcomed the Stallone family to Florida in a message on X, formerly known as Twitter, on Friday.
"Welcome to the Free State of Florida!" Casey wrote alongside a clip of Stallone's conversation with his daughters.
"In addition to respecting and protecting your God-given, constitutional right to be free, you can also buy toothpaste without having an armed guard in CVS unlock it for you," she added.
In 2021, the Rambo actor purchased a sprawling $35.4 million home in Palm Beach, according to the Palm Beach Daily News.
Sly’s new Palm Beach home sits on approximately 1.5 lakefront acres, facing over 250 feet of beach with a dock, per the outlet.
The total living space — including a main house, a guest house, and a pool pavilion near the keyhole-shaped pool in the backyard — is over 13,000 square feet. Between the main and guest spaces, the property counts seven bedrooms and 12 baths, per its Realtor.com listing.
Sylvester Stallone on Wednesday, May 10, 2023 -- (Photo by: Nathan Congleton/NBC via Getty Images)
Since purchasing their home in Florida three years ago, Stallone and his wife Jennifer Flavin have been spending time in both Florida and California.
Flavin spoke with Fox News Digital at the inaugural "Rocky Day" celebration in December about the couple’s relocation, saying, "It’s an incredible move, I have to say I’m really happy with our move and our change."
"I was born and raised there, two of our kids were born there, but now everyone’s out, our daughters moved to the East Coast … so there wasn’t really anything left for me in California," she continued. "A few of our best friends also moved, so I think it’s [a] good change, just making new friends, living a totally different lifestyle, I love it, I’m really happy."
She wasn’t alone in her desire for a fresh start.
(L-R) Sylvester Stallone and Jennifer Flavin attend Netflix's "Sly" world premiere during the Toronto International Film Festival at Roy Thomson Hall on September 16, 2023 in Toronto, Ontario. (Photo by Ryan Emberley/Getty Images for Netflix)
In the opening scenes of his Netflix documentary, "Sly," Stallone spoke about the decision to move, saying it was beneficial to his creativity.
"I wasn’t moving because, ‘Oh, wow, I wanted another beautiful view.’ Any time changing that paradigm which you become used to, it’s literally to jump-start that process again," he explained.
Flavin also made it clear in her interview that change was the primary factor, not any concern over crime rates expressed by some celebrities.
"There’s crime everywhere, there’s crime in Florida, too, so I didn’t move because of crime. You can find it anywhere you look, even in small towns," the mother of three said.
"I think California is probably the most beautiful state in the United States, I absolutely love it, but I just needed a change," she added. "I felt like I’ve been there long enough, and life is short, so I wanted to make a change and not just be sitting in one house the rest of my life."