RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil – It has emerged that there’s a real life ruckus unfolding behind the scenes of Sylvester Stallone’s upcoming action extravaganza The Expendables .

O2, the Brazilian production company that has been instrumental to the film’s development, are claiming that Sly owes them a whopping £1.36 million in back payments, and are poised to take the Hollywood legend to court unless he coughs up.

The allegation appeared in Brazilian magazine Veja, which also claimed that many of O2′s staff had been unpaid as a result of the shortfall.

According to the magazine, there have been several instances where the O2 offices were besieged by angry workers demanding payment, although these reports are yet to be fully substantiated.

In a statement, the company confirmed the situation: “In 2009 O2 performed production services for the film [The] Expendables, directed and acted in by Sylvester Stallone and until now, the company is awaiting reimbursement for its expenditure.”

The Expendables follows in the footsteps of Stallone’s recent movies, placing him both in front and behind the camera. Set to be one of this year’s big summer blockbusters, it also features a veritable rogue s gallery of action movie favourites, with musclebound stars of yesteryear such as Dolf Lundgren and Bruce Willis rubbing shoulders with more contemporary talents like Jason Statham.