Following several poorly reviewed box office flops, Stallone started to regain fame for his role in the crime drama "Shade" (2003) which was a box office failure but was praised by critics. He was also supposed to star and direct a movie about the murder of rappers Tupac Shakur and Biggie Smalls, entitled "Notorious", but the movie was not made due to legal issues presented by the 2009 movie of the same name.