UPDATED with more reactions: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Sylvester Stallone, Dolph Lundgren and Stephen King are among those paying tribute to Chuck Norris, the veteran action film and Walker, Texas Ranger star, who died Thursday at age 86.
“Chuck was an icon,” Schwarzenegger wrote on X today. “I am grateful that I was able to work with him in multiple ways over the years, from promoting fitness to sharing the screen together. He was a badass, in real life and in Hollywood. His legend will be with us forever. My thoughts are with his family.”
Chuck was an icon.
I am grateful that I was able to work with him in multiple ways over the years, from promoting fitness to sharing the screen together. He was a badass, in real life and in Hollywood.
His legend will be with us forever. My thoughts are with his family.
— Arnold Schwarzenegger (@Schwarzenegger) March 20, 2026
Schwarzenegger appeared in the action-hero Expendables franchise with Norris, specifically in The Expendables 2 in 2012.
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Stallone and Lundgren also worked with Norris The Expendables 2, which was directed by Stallone.
“I had a great time working with Chuck,” Stallone wrote in Instagram. “He was All American in every way. Great man and my condolences to his wonderful family.”
“Chuck Norris is the champ, wrote Lundgren on Instagram. “Ever since I was a young martial artist and later getting into movies, I always looked up to him as a role model. Someone who had the respect, humility and strength it takes to be a man. We will miss you, my friend.”
While the two never appeared together in films, a young Van Damme trained with Norris for nearly two years in martial arts in the early 1980s before his acting career began to take off.
“Deepest condolences on the passing of my friend, Chuck Norris,” Van Damme wrote on Instagram alongside a photo montage of the two. “We knew each other from my early days, and I always respected the man he was. My heart and prayers are with his family. He will never be forgotten. 🥋🙏🏼💔”
Stephen King appreciated Norris’ online memes and jokes, writing on X on separate posts, “My fave Chuck Norris joke: Chuck doesn’t flush the toilet, he scares the shit out of it.” In another he wrote, “When he was born, Chuck Norris drove his mother home from the hospital.” He added in another, “Seriously, I thought he was great. SILENT RAGE scared hell out of my boys…and me.”
My fave Chuck Norris joke: Chuck doesn’t flush the toilet, he scares the shit out of it.
— Stephen King (@StephenKing) March 20, 2026
Actor Lorenzo Lamas also paid tribute to Norris, admiring the actor for his skill in martial arts. Lamas trained at a Los Angeles martial arts studio that was part of the Chuck Norris network.
“My prayers to Gina, Aaron and family. Watch out evil world, there is an angel of consequence at the gates. Chuck Norris doesn’t just get wings, he gets even,” he wrote on X.