Sylvester Stallone has recently opened up and explained his tough decision to not return as the famous Rocky Balboa for the upcoming Creed 3. Stallone was actually the creator of the original Rocky franchise that garnered massive attention and praise following the theatrical debut of 1976’s Rocky.
Stallone wrote and starred in Rocky, which centered around the titular hard-headed, tough-as-nails club fighter, hailing from Philly. Stallone's character receives a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, a real shot at winning the world heavyweight championship that has up until this point been held by Apollo Creed (Carl Weathers). For a film that received a budget of under $1 million, Rocky became an instantaneous hit at the box office. Rocky's unexpected success quickly expanded, adding multiple sequels to the roster and maintaining an iconic boxing franchise that has truly stood the test of time. The latest addition to the bubbling franchise, Creed 3, will be the ninth film in the franchise. Creed 3 also acts as the third film in the spinoff series that began back in 2015.
The Creed films followed the character of Adonis Creed, the son of Rocky's deceased mentor and former arch-enemy, Apollo. To many fans’ excitement, Michael B. Jordan is set to reprise his iconic role as Adonis, while simultaneously making his directorial debut. Accompanying Jordan is Loki and Lovecraft Country star Jonathan Majors, who will be portraying Anderson Dame, Adonis' latest boxing rival who he must take down. Over a year ago, Stallone made the shocking and disappointing announcement to fans that he would in fact not be returning as Rocky in Creed 3. Now, Stallone has told Metro UK why he made that surprising choice.
Not only was this alarming news to hardcore fans, but this also marks the first time that Stallone will be completely absent from the franchise. In the interview, Stallone clarified that it was his decision, and his decision only, to back out from the film. He went on to reveal that he felt as though his character’s story had already been flushed out and told. Stallone added that he was pretty certain there wasn’t an aspect of Rocky that he hadn’t already yet explored. He stated, “Well it’s different because, actually, I bowed out of that one, I just didn’t know if there was any part for me. It takes it in a different direction. I wish them well and keep punching!"
Although Stallone's physical presence will be missing from the film, he will still remain among the shadows, serving as a producer for Creed 3. No plot points have been revealed thus far surrounding the highly anticipated film, yet it's obvious from Stallone's decision to leave that Creed 3 will be setting itself apart from the rest of the films in the franchise.
Creed 3 is set to hit theaters on November 23, 2022.
Source: Metro UK