Sylvester Stallone Almost Didn’t Return for the Best Rocky Sequel (& It’s Hard to Blame Him)

by

True action heroes like Sylvester Stallone are rare – it takes a special kind of person to endure the physical demands and dedication he brings to his work. While Stallone isn’t getting any younger, he’s still in demand. Now, filmmakers are often casting him in roles where he’s a seasoned mentor, sharing his expertise with a new generation of characters. That’s the premise of Tulsa King on Paramount+, where Stallone plays Dwight Manfredi, a man assembling a team of ambitious newcomers eager to make a name for themselves.

Sylvester Stallone has been discussing his role in the show Tulsa King, but he’s also been frequently asked about his famous mentor character, Rocky Balboa, who now owns a restaurant in Philadelphia. In the first Creed film, Rocky trains the son of his former rival, Apollo Creed, while also facing his own challenges. Although Rocky wins in the end, director Ryan Coogler originally envisioned the character appearing only in that first movie of the Creed series.

In a video for GQ, Stallone shared that Ryan Coogler pitched him the idea for Creed long before the film was made. While Stallone appreciated the concept, he wasn’t willing to let his character, Rocky, die in the story.

I always felt uneasy about the project, and I managed to avoid it for two or three years. Ryan Coogler really kept trying to get me on board. We shared the same agent, but I was hesitant because his script killed off Rocky. He was written to have Lou Gehrig’s disease, and I strongly dislike it when characters die like that. I’d prefer to see them simply leave and disappear, rather than have a tragic death that would really upset the audience.

Once they found a way to move the story forward – giving Rocky cancer during Adonis’s training – Stallone readily accepted the idea of his character retiring from boxing, and things progressed easily from that point on.

After we moved past an initial hurdle, I decided to try it. It required a lot of emotional performance because I couldn’t rely on physical action – I wasn’t doing any fighting. It was a good creative challenge, and ultimately, it worked out well.

Stallone Going to Bat for Rocky Was the Right Move

Ryan Coogler likely would have portrayed Rocky’s death with sensitivity. Adonis would have probably used it as fuel to push himself even harder, both to live up to his father’s name and to honor Rocky’s legacy. Still, it’s difficult to picture Creed II without Rocky. The movie centers on Adonis seeking revenge for his father’s death by fighting Ivan Drago’s son, and Rocky is key to the emotional weight of the story because he’s one of the few people still alive who saw Apollo die.

Having Sylvester Stallone involved as Rocky keeps the possibility of his return open in future films. Although Michael B. Jordan is increasingly busy with projects outside of boxing, he’s expressed interest in making another Creed movie. And Stallone himself remains enthusiastic about revisiting the iconic character, making a future appearance likely.

What do you think? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!

https://comicbook.com/movies/list/5-incredibly-depressing-movie-endings-that-still-haunt-us-years-later/embed/#

Read More

2025-10-25 16:10