Sylvester Stallone made history with his self-written Rocky franchise. A movie of desperation, heartbreak, and ultimately triumph, it is many things in one. Sylvester Stallone became an overnight star with the franchise and went on to be nominated for the Oscars as well.
Nearly forty years later, Rocky’s success led to a spinoff and extension of Rocky Balboa’s story in the form of the Creed franchise. Creed, although focused on Apollo Creed’s son Adonis, showed an old Rocky taking up the role of trainer and mentor for his then-rival’s son. However, filming Creed was an extremely emotional and humbling experience for Sylvester for many reasons.
Creed Was An Humbling Experience For Sylvester Stallone
When Sylvester Stallone was first presented with the script of Creed, he was apprehensive about reprising the role. For him, the story of Rocky Balboa had ended long ago. However, with much persistence and deliberation from the director, Sylvester eventually agreed to star in the movie. But the experience of showcasing Rocky‘s story after nearly 40 years was incredibly humbling and emotional for the Expendables star.
“When you sit in the chair and you come as one person and then you open your eyes an hour and a half later and you’ve been transformed to a person who’s not healthy… it’s very relatable. This is what people live through every day… it made me definitely realize the clock is ticking.”
He realized perhaps for the first time that everyone must soon taste death. His feelings were also a result of his eldest son’s tragic death during the pre-production of the first Creed movie. The loss was too much for him to bear, but Ryan Coogler convinced him to dedicate the movie to his eldest son, given the father-son relationship portrayed in the movie. Rocky’s emotions in the movie thus are reminiscent of Sylvester Stallone, which makes the movie even more dear for the fans of the hit franchise Rocky.
Despite Emotional Connection, Sylvester Stallone Did Not Return In Creed III
The Rocky spin-off Creed means many things to Sylvester Stallone. From being an extension of the movie that he wrote and starred in, which eventually earned him the fame he deserves to be a dedication to his late son, Creed has been an emotional journey for Stallone. Despite the connection, Stallone refused to come back in the third installment of the movie starring Michael B. Jordon. In an interview, he explained the reason,
“It was taken in a direction that is quite different than I would’ve taken it. It’s a different philosophy, Irwin Winkler’s and Michael B. Jordan’s. I wish them well, but I’m much more of a sentimentalist. I like my heroes getting beat up, but I just don’t want them going into that dark space. I just feel people have enough darkness.”
Hence, due to a difference of opinion regarding the story, Stallone dropped out. While we regret not seeing Sylvester Stallone in the movie, we still respect his decision as even Rocky deserves a break after these long tiring years.
You can stream Creed on Netflix.
Source: IMDb
