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Roki images5/7/2023 ![]() “Every word, every syllable, every grammatical error was all my fault. “I have zero ownership of ‘Rocky,’” Stallone told Variety at the time. Although he earned net points on the original movie - which cost just over $1 million to produce and grossed $225 million globally - and received first-dollar gross on the early sequels, Stallone does not maintain the rights to the characters. Stallone first opened up about his resentment over the “Rocky” rights in a 2019 interview with Variety. Speaking to SiriusXM host Jessica Shaw last November, Stallone said it was “a rough emotional ride” cutting ties with the “Rocky” franchise for “Creed III.” The actor added he needed to do so because “you can’t make peace with someone who’s been so, so nefarious, in my opinion.” Stallone was referring to Winkler, of course. Stallone naively sold Winkler the rights all those years ago when he was a struggling actor and clearly unaware of the franchise potential for the character. The two have long feuded over rights to the “Rocky” franchise, which Winkler has owned since the Oscar-winning 1976 original. Stallone’s clash with Winkler is an even bigger reason for his absence in “Creed III,” so big that it might mean Stallone never plays Rocky again. That’s kind of how we rolled out the story for this one.” What were those transformative years, those childhood traumas that shaped today? I think the room for this story was really about Adonis Creed moving forward with his family, and having him move forward. In order to do that, we had to go into the past. That underdog spirit, I think, connects the underdog in all of us…I want Adonis to stand on his own two feet. “First of all, Sly and Rocky’s DNA is through this entire franchise,” Jordan told HOT97 ahead of the third film’s opening. For Jordan, it only made sense for “Creed III” to show Adonis without the safeguard of Rocky. The first “Creed” movie focused on the relationship between Adonis and Rocky, while “Creed II” pushed Adonis on his own path. ![]() Jordan was also interested in crafting an Adonis Creed movie that was all about Adonis. I just feel people have enough darkness.” I like my heroes getting beat up, but I just don’t want them going into that dark space. I wish them well, but I’m much more of a sentimentalist. It’s a different philosophy - Irwin Winkler’s and Michael B. “It was taken in a direction that is quite different than I would’ve taken it. “That’s a regretful situation because I know what it could have been,” Stallone told THR about disagreeing with the sequel’s tone. As Variety film critic Owen Gleiberman observed in his review, “Creed III” is a sports drama that feels more like a “Cape Fear”-inspired thriller than a traditional “Rocky” movie. ![]() “Creed III,” scripted by Keenan Coogler and Zach Baylin from a story they cooked up with original “Creed” director Ryan Coogler, is a far darker take on the uplifting “Rocky” franchise. ![]()
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