First Look at ‘I Play Rocky’: Exploring the Origins of the Iconic Film at CinemaCon
The upcoming film I Play Rocky, directed by Peter Farrelly and produced by Amazon MGM Studios, stars Anthony Ippolito as a young Sylvester Stallone. The film chronicles Stallone’s journey before achieving superstardom, focusing on his efforts to get the iconic movie Rocky made.
On Wednesday evening, the studio showcased new footage from the film at CinemaCon.
Ippolito rose to prominence for portraying another legendary figure, Al Pacino, in the Paramount+ limited series The Offer. He has also appeared in the Netflix film Purple Hearts.
The film’s cast includes AnnaSophia Robb, P.J. Byrne, Toby Kebbell, Tracy Letts, Erik Palladino, Rob Demery, Jay Duplass, Matt Dillon, Stephan James, Kiki Seto, Robert Morgan, Saul Stein, and Trevor St. John.
Ippolito, Seto, Robb, James, and Farrelly introduced the footage to an audience of exhibitors and fans during the event.
Anthony Ippolito as a young Sylvester Stallone in ‘I Play Rocky‘
The recently revealed footage depicts a determined actor grappling with a speech impediment and a partially paralyzed face. Stallone is shown writing a screenplay that attracts interest from a major studio, but he insists on playing the lead role. “I don’t even know what that means,” a prospective producer responds. “You don’t have the looks, and you talk like you have rocks in your mouth.”
“I put my heart and soul on the page,” Stallone remarks. Rejecting an offer of substantial money, he opts to endure financial hardship to see the film made as he envisioned it. Despite numerous challenges and setbacks, the movie Rocky ultimately achieves monumental success, becoming the highest-grossing film of 1976 and securing ten Oscar nominations, including Best Picture.
Iconic scenes, including Stallone running up the steps of the Philadelphia art museum, are expected to resonate with audiences.
The narrative also hints at moments from Stallone’s early life, such as advice from a teacher who points out the uniqueness of his name. “I wouldn’t call yourself Mike,” she advises. “There are a lot of Mikes in the world. There is only one Sylvester. Sylvester Stallone.”
The Rocky franchise, distributed by United Artists and later MGM, stands as one of the most successful sports film series, grossing over $1.7 billion worldwide, including the Creed spinoffs. Established in 1976 with the original film winning Best Picture at the Academy Awards, it catapulted Stallone into Hollywood stardom, earning him nominations for Best Actor and Original Screenplay.
Production of I Play Rocky is spearheaded by Toby Emmerich, Christian Baha, and Farrelly, with the screenplay crafted by Peter Gamble. FilmNation Entertainment is managing production services and international sales.
