New biopic shows Stallone’s ‘Rocky’ rise was the real underdog story

Posted November 10, 2026 4:00 am.

Last Updated November 10, 2026 5:23 am.

TORONTO — Five decades after it was released, “Rocky,” the film about a small-time boxer who takes on a world heavyweight champion, remains a tale cherished by underdogs everywhere.

Yet the true story of how Sylvester Stallone, then a struggling actor, wrote the screenplay and fought to star in the Academy Award-winning film, might be the more compelling against-the-odds narrative.

At least that’s the belief of Peter Farrelly, the director behind the crowd-pleasing biopic “I Play Rocky,” which hits Canadian theatres Friday.

“The reason I wanted to do it is because I felt this actually had a bigger arc. Rocky had a job in the beginning. He was a bone breaker, but he had a job. And, at the end, he doesn’t win, he survives. Stallone was homeless. He’s doing soft core porn. He is selling his dog. And he wins the Oscar,” Farrelly said.

“When I read this thing, I was like, this is better than ‘Rocky’ and gives you the same feeling,” the award-winning director said.

Up-and-comer Anthony Ippolito stars as Stallone and the 27-year-old actor has earned critical praise for his portrayal, particularly for capturing Stallone’s specific voice and mannerisms.

The movie follows a young Stallone trying to land acting parts when he’s encouraged by then-girlfriend, Sasha, played by AnnaSophia Robb, to write a part for himself. When his “Rocky” script impresses a pair of Hollywood producers, Stallone doesn’t back down until the studio lets the then-unknown actor play the titular role of Rocky Balboa.

Ippolito, who earned the part after sending a self-taped audition to the filmmakers, said playing the action star involved doing homework and undergoing a physical transformation to bulk up. But to embody Stallone, rather than merely impersonate him, Ippolito said he focused on connecting to the material.

“It’s just a great story and so just kind of deciding that you’re going to take a more organic approach to this and enter it from a more vulnerable place as opposed to from an external sort of portrayal,” he said.

Farrelly called Ippolito “a superstar”

“When he’s in a scene, he is in a scene,” the director said. “He’s not faking it, he’s there, and you feel his performance.”

Meanwhile, Toronto-born Stephan James stars in the film as athlete-turned-actor Carl Weathers, who played Apollo Creed, the heavyweight champion who challenges Balboa.

James watched footage of Weathers, who died in 2024, and said he tried to “offer up something different than what people are used to seeing from Carl.”

“Trying to balance what we know as Carl and then giving him a layer of humanity, frustration, insecurity, vulnerability, whatever that is to make him more relatable to people,” James said.

“I Play Rocky” premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival and finished first runner-up for the People’s Choice Award.

In 1976, “Rocky” launched Stallone to stardom and was the highest-grossing film of the year. It earned 10 Oscar nominations the following year, and won three, including best picture. The film spawned a franchise with sequels and spinoffs and is widely regarded as one of the all-time greatest movies.

Given its legacy, depicting the film’s making — under the watchful eye of diehard fans — could be a “slippery slope,” Farrelly said. But the veteran director said he wasn’t afraid to take on the challenge.

“”Rocky’s’ better, knowing what he went through. And that’s why I felt like (this film) wasn’t exploiting ‘Rocky,’ it was actually enhancing ‘Rocky,’” Farrelly said.

As for Stallone’s reaction, Farrelly said the 80-year-old actor has seen it and “he loved it.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 10, 2026.

Kaitlyn McGrath, The Canadian Press

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