Bodybuilder Serdar Kebapcilar dubbed the ‘Turkish Rambo’ dies aged 65 after starring in 80s Sylvester Stallone rip-offs
A BODYBUILDER dubbed the “Turkish Rambo” has died at the age of 65.
Serdar Kebapcilar was also popular for his role in rip-off Sylvester Stallone Hollywood blockbusters during the 1980s.
His death was announced by fellow actor Osman Avcı on social media on Sunday.
Kebapcilar helped to put Turkey on the map in the bodybuilding community and won various medals throughout his career.
Born in 1958 in the Aegean province of İzmir, he began weightlifting at the age of 12 and finished in sixth place at the world bodybuilding championship in 1978.
But despite his success on the bodybuilding stage, it would be another stage where he also blossomed.
Thanks to his ripped physique and good looks, Kebapcilar was quickly picked up by producers to star in a number of films throughout the 1980s.
Those include “Karaşimşek”, “Korkusuz”, “Komando” and “Guillano”, which all became big hits in Turkey. during their “golden age of cinema”.
Some films were even picked up by US companies and broke viewing records between 1985-1990.
In fact, Kebapcilar claimed that Karasimsek, Turkey’s first boxing film that was heavily reminiscent of Sylvester Stallone’s “Rocky”, was only shot in around one to one-and-half months and swiftly topped the charts.
The film was re-released with English dubs in 2009.
But the Turkish Rambo would struggle to continue his acting career into the following decade.
Having failed to receive offers for leading roles, he soon fell out of the Turkish movie scene.
Speaking in an interview following his short-lived fame, Kebapcilar said: “Since I was the leading actor, I wanted to play the leading role in new projects, but since the offers were not for the leading role, I had to take a long break.”
While never giving hope to returning to the cinema one day, Kebapcılar started to focus on his hometown gym in Izmir in the meantime.
According to a 2012 interview, however, financial woes compelled him to sell it off.
Kebapcılar was forced to move back in with his mother while grappling with health issues that left him severely immobile.