Is Sylvester Stallone's Rocky in Creed III?

By Cameron Bonomolo

It's Adonis "Donnie" Creed (Michael B. Jordan) and Damian "Dame" Anderson (Jonathan Majors) settling old scores in the ring, but there's no round 3 for trainer Rocky Balboa (Sylvester Stallone) in Creed III. MGM and United Artists revealed the first trailer for the sequel to 2015's Creed and 2018's Creed II, both of which saw retired boxer Rocky mentor Donnie, the son of his best friend and former rival: the late world champion Apollo Creed (Carl Weathers). "I spent the last seven years of my life living out my wildest dreams. Bianca. Rocky. My dad," Donnie says in the trailer. "I stood on their shoulders." But for this next round, he stands alone: Rocky's not in Creed's corner.

Is Sylvester Stallone in Creed 3?

Stallone serves as a producer but is not part of the Creed III cast, which includes Michael B. Jordan, Tessa Thompson, Jonathan Majors, Wood Harris, Florian Munteanu, and Phylicia Rashad.

Did Rocky Die in Creed 2?

After coming out of boxing retirement for one last fight against heavyweight champion Mason "The Line" Dixon (Antonio Tarver) in 2006's Rocky Balboa, Rocky was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma in Creed. 

By Creed II, Rocky's cancer was in remission. After Donnie's victory over Viktor Drago (Munteanu) — the son of Ivan Drago (Dolph Lundgren), who killed Apollo in the ring in Rocky IV — Rocky reconciled with his estranged son, Rocky Jr. (Milo Ventimiglia). Creed II ended with Rocky seemingly retiring as Donnie's trainer before traveling from Philadelphia to Vancouver to visit his son and young grandson, Logan (Robbie Johns). 

Sylvester Stallone's Rocky Retirement

In 2018, Stallone announced his Rocky retirement after more than 40 years when wrapping filming on Creed II. 

"This is probably my last rodeo, because what I thought happened — and has happened — I never expected. I thought Rocky was over in 2006 [the release of Rocky Balboa], and I was very happy with that. And then all of a sudden this young man [Jordan] presented himself and the whole story changed," Stallone said in the video. "It went on to a new generation, new problems, new adventures. And I couldn't be happier, because as I step back, because my story has been told, there's a whole new world that is going to be opening up for the audience, for this generation."

Stallone added at the time: "Thank you very much, [Creed II director] Steven [Caple Jr.], and definitely you, Michael, for making that possible. Now you have to carry the mantle."

Creed II ended on a similar note, with Rocky's ringside bow as he told the younger Creed: "It's your time."

Stallone later wrote in an Instagram post, "I just want to thank everyone around the whole wide world for taking the Rocky family into their hearts for over 40 years. It's been my ultimate privilege to have been able to create and play this meaningful character. Though it breaks my heart, sadly all things must pass… and end. I love you kind and generous people, and the most wonderful thing of all, is that ROCKY will never die because he lives on in you."

In 2021, Jordan confirmed he would be making his directorial debut without Rocky in Creed III.

"I think that Sly let it be known that he wasn't coming back for this one but I think, you know, his essence and his spirit… there's always going to be a little bit of Rocky within Adonis," Jordan told IGN. "But this is a Creed franchise, and we really want to build this story and this world around him moving forward. So, it's always respect and always a sh-t-ton of love for what he's built, but we really want to push and navigate Adonis forward and the family that he created."

Will There Be a New Rocky Balboa Movie?

Despite retiring the role, Stallone has been developing a new Rocky movie about the ex-fighter mentoring an undocumented immigrant. "Rocky meets a young, angry person who got stuck in this country when he comes to see his sister. He takes him into his life, and unbelievable adventures begin, and they wind up south of the border," the franchise star and writer told Variety in 2019. "It's very, very timely."

"I never say no to Rocky, because I have a couple of ideas," Stallone wrote on Instagram in 2022, revealing his ideas "don't really involve the ring as much as they should. I'm not so confident that will be exciting enough for the audience. But who knows?"

Stallone vs. Winkler

Stallone, who wrote every Rocky movie since the 1976 original, co-wrote Creed and Creed II. He did not write or co-write Creed III, receiving a "characters created by" credit and serving as a producer. 

The actor and producer has been publicly feuding with Rocky franchise producer Irwin Winkler, demanding he return "what's left" of the Rocky rights. 

"After IRWIN controlling ROCKY for over 47 years, and now CREED, I really would like [to] have at least a little [of] WHAT's LEFT of my RIGHTS back, before passing it on to ONLY YOUR CHILDREN," Stallone wrote on social media. "I believe That would be a FAIR gesture from this 93 year old gentleman ?"

Stallone added his lack of ownership of Rocky is "a painful subject that eats at my soul. I wanted to leave something of Rocky for my children, but it's always great hearing from the loyal fans… Keep Punching."

Creed III Release Date and Synopsis

After dominating the boxing world, Adonis Creed (Jordan) has been thriving in both his career and family life. When a childhood friend and former boxing prodigy, Damian (Majors), resurfaces after serving a long sentence in prison, he is eager to prove that he deserves his shot in the ring. The face-off between former friends is more than just a fight. To settle the score, Adonis must put his future on the line to battle Damian — a fighter who has nothing to lose.

Creed III is in theaters on March 3rd, 2023.

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