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''Creed'' is a 2015 American
sports Sport pertains to any form of competitive physical activity or game that aims to use, maintain, or improve physical ability and skills while providing enjoyment to participants and, in some cases, entertainment to spectators. Sports can, th ...
drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-g ...
directed by
Ryan Coogler Ryan Kyle Coogler (born May 23, 1986) is an American film director, producer and screenwriter. He is a recipient of four NAACP Image Awards, four Black Reel Awards, a Golden Globe Award nomination and an Academy Award nomination for Best Pictu ...
from a screenplay by Coogler, Aaron Covington and contributions by Sylvester Stallone. It is the sequel to '' Rocky Balboa'' (2006), the seventh installment and spin-off of the ''Rocky'' franchise, and stars
Michael B. Jordan Michael Bakari Jordan (; born February 9, 1987) is an American actor. He is known for his film roles as shooting victim Oscar Grant in the drama ''Fruitvale Station'' (2013), boxer Adonis Creed in ''Creed'' (2015), and Erik Killmonger in ''Bl ...
, Stallone,
Tessa Thompson Tessa Lynne Thompson (born October 3, 1983) is an American actress. She began her professional acting career with the Los Angeles Women's Shakespeare Company while studying at Santa Monica College. She appeared in productions of '' The Tempest ...
,
Phylicia Rashad Phylicia Rashad ( ) ( née Ayers-Allen; born June 19, 1948) is an American actress, singer and director who is dean of the College of Fine Arts at Howard University. She is best known for her role as Clair Huxtable on the NBC sitcom ''The Cosby ...
,
Tony Bellew Anthony Lewis Bellew (born 30 November 1982) is an English former professional boxer who competed from 2007 to 2018, and has since worked as a boxing analyst and commentator. He held the WBC cruiserweight title from 2016 to 2017, and challeng ...
, and
Graham McTavish Graham McTavish (born 4 January 1961) is a Scottish actor and author. He is known for his roles as Dwalin in '' The Hobbit'' film trilogy, Vlad Dracula Țepeș in the Netflix animated franchise ''Castlevania'', Loki in various Marvel animated ...
. In the film, amateur boxer
Adonis Creed Adonis "Donnie" Creed (born Adonis Johnson) is a fictional character from the follow-ups to the ''Rocky'' film series: ''Creed'' (2015), ''Creed II'' (2018), and the upcoming ''Creed III'' (2023). The character is played by Michael B. Jordan in ...
(Jordan) is trained and mentored by
Rocky Balboa Robert "Rocky" Balboa (also known by his ring name The Italian Stallion), is a fictional title character and the protagonist of the ''Rocky'' film series. The character was created by Sylvester Stallone, who has also portrayed him in all eigh ...
(Stallone), the former rival turned friend of Adonis' father,
Apollo Creed Apollo Creed is a fictional character from the ''Rocky'' films, played by Carl Weathers. He serves as the main antagonist in ''Rocky'' and '' Rocky II'' and also appears in ''Rocky III'' and ''Rocky IV''. He is a tough but agile boxer w ...
. Although ''Rocky Balboa'' was considered the end of the franchise,
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by amazon (company), Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded o ...
hired Coogler in 2013 to develop a ''Rocky'' spin-off. Coogler and Covington's original screenplay was completed by April 2014, with the involvement of Jordan and Stallone also confirmed. The remaining cast were hired by January 2015, after which,
principal photography Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production. Personnel Besides the main film personnel, such as actor ...
began and lasted until that April, with filming locations including
Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...
,
Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
, and Gainesville. ''Creed'' premiered on November 19, 2015, at the
Regency Village Theater The Fox Theatre, Westwood Village, also known as the Fox Village Theatre, is a historic, landmark cinema in Westwood, Los Angeles, California. Westwood Village, in the heart of Westwood, is near the University of California, Los Angeles UCLA. It ...
in Los Angeles, and was theatrically released in the United States on November 25, to coincide with the 40th anniversary of the date of the opening scene in the first film. The film was praised for Coogler's direction, the screenplay, and acting performances. The film was also a commercial success, grossing $173 million worldwide. Among its accolades, it was selected by
National Board of Review The National Board of Review of Motion Pictures is a non-profit organization of New York City area film enthusiasts. Its awards, which are announced in early December, are considered an early harbinger of the film awards season that culminat ...
as one of the top ten films of 2015, while Stallone won the
National Board of Review Award for Best Supporting Actor The National Board of Review Award for Best Supporting Actor is one of the annual film awards given (since 1954) by the National Board of Review of Motion Pictures. Winners 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s 2020s Multiple ...
, the Critics' Choice Award for Best Supporting Actor, and Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture, and was nominated for the
Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor The Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor is an award presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It is given in honor of an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance in a supporting role while worki ...
. The sequel, ''
Creed II ''Creed II'' is a 2018 American sports drama film directed by Steven Caple Jr. from a screenplay by Juel Taylor and Sylvester Stallone. The sequel to ''Creed'' (2015) and the eighth installment in the ''Rocky'' franchise, the film stars Michae ...
'', was released in 2018. A third film, ''
Creed III ''Creed III'' is an upcoming American sports drama film directed by Michael B. Jordan (in his feature directorial debut) with a screenplay by Keenan Coogler and Zach Baylin from a story they co-wrote with Ryan Coogler. The sequel to '' Creed I ...
'', is set to be released on March 3, 2023.


Plot

In 1998, Adonis "Donnie" Johnson -- the son of former heavyweight champion Apollo Creed via an extramarital affair -- is serving time in a
Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
youth detention center when Creed's widow, Mary Anne, visits and offers to take him in. In 2015, Donnie is in Tijuana, preparing for his fight in an amateur boxing bout hosted in a bar. Upon returning from his latest fight, Donnie resigns from the Smith Boardley Financial Group to pursue his dream of becoming a professional boxer. Donnie auditions at Los Angeles' elite Delphi Boxing Academy, managed by family friend Tony "Little Duke" Evers Jr., the son of Apollo's trainer
Tony "Duke" Evers This is a list of characters from the ''Rocky'' film series, consisting of ''Rocky'' (1976), '' Rocky II'' (1979), ''Rocky III'' (1982), ''Rocky IV'' (1985), ''Rocky V'' (1990), '' Rocky Balboa'' (2006), '' Creed'' (2015), ''Creed II'' (2018) a ...
, but is turned down. This rejection is further emphasized as Donnie is beaten in a sparring match by light heavyweight division #2 contender Danny "The Stuntman" Wheeler after he publicly challenges the whole gym to prove himself, betting his 1967
Ford Mustang The Ford Mustang is a series of American automobiles manufactured by Ford. In continuous production since 1964, the Mustang is currently the longest-produced Ford car nameplate. Currently in its sixth generation, it is the fifth-best selli ...
that no one can get a clean head shot on him. Mary Anne vehemently opposes his aspirations, remembering how her husband was killed in the ring by
Ivan Drago Ivan Vasilyevich Drago (russian: Иван Васильевич Драго, ) is a Soviet-Russian fictional character from the ''Rocky'' film series. He first appears in the 1985 film '' Rocky IV'', in which he is the central antagonist and ri ...
thirty years ago. Undaunted, Donnie travels to
Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
in hopes of getting in touch with his father's old friend and rival, former heavyweight champion, Rocky Balboa. Donnie meets Rocky at Rocky's Italian restaurant, Adrian's, named in honor of his deceased wife, and asks Rocky to become his trainer. Rocky is reluctant to return to boxing, having already made a one-off comeback at a very advanced age despite having suffered
brain trauma A traumatic brain injury (TBI), also known as an intracranial injury, is an injury to the brain caused by an external force. TBI can be classified based on severity (ranging from mild traumatic brain injury TBI/concussionto severe traumatic br ...
during his career as a fighter. However, he eventually agrees. Donnie asks him about the "secret third fight" between him and Apollo just after Apollo helped Rocky regain the heavyweight title, and Rocky reveals that Apollo won. Donnie trains at the Front Street Gym, with several of Rocky's longtime friends as cornermen. He also finds a love interest in Bianca, an up-and-coming singer and songwriter in the early stages of progressive hearing loss. Donnie, fighting under his biological mother's surname, Johnson, and the fight name "Hollywood", defeats local fighter Leo "The Lion" Sporino, which upsets the opposing corner. This leads to the opposing side leaking the news that Donnie is Creed's illegitimate son. Rocky receives a call from the handlers of world light heavyweight champion "Pretty" Ricky Conlan, who is being forced into retirement by an impending prison term. He offers to make Donnie his final challenger—provided that he legally change his surname to Creed. Donnie balks at first, wanting to forge his own legacy. However, he eventually agrees. While helping Donnie train, Rocky is diagnosed with
non-Hodgkin's lymphoma Non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL), also known as non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, is a group of hematological malignancy, blood cancers that includes all types of lymphomas except Hodgkin lymphomas. Symptoms include lymphadenopathy, enlarged lymph nodes, fever ...
. He is unwilling to undergo
chemotherapy Chemotherapy (often abbreviated to chemo and sometimes CTX or CTx) is a type of cancer treatment that uses one or more anti-cancer drugs (chemotherapeutic agents or alkylating agents) as part of a standardized chemotherapy regimen. Chemotherap ...
, remembering that it was not enough to save Adrian when she had
ovarian cancer Ovarian cancer is a cancerous tumor of an ovary. It may originate from the ovary itself or more commonly from communicating nearby structures such as fallopian tubes or the inner lining of the abdomen. The ovary is made up of three different c ...
. His diagnosis and the fact that his best friend and brother-in-law
Paulie Pennino This is a list of characters from the ''Rocky'' film series, consisting of ''Rocky'' (1976), ''Rocky II'' (1979), ''Rocky III'' (1982), ''Rocky IV'' (1985), ''Rocky V'' (1990), ''Rocky Balboa'' (2006), ''Creed'' (2015), ''Creed II'' (2018) and ...
—Adrian's brother—has now died on top of Adrian, Apollo, and his old trainer,
Mickey Goldmill Mickey Goldmill is a fictional character created by Sylvester Stallone and portrayed by Burgess Meredith in the ''Rocky'' film series. Meredith was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in the first film ...
, further force him to confront his own mortality. Seeing Rocky shaken, Donnie urges him to seek treatment, which he does. Donnie fights Conlan at
Goodison Park Goodison Park is a football stadium in the Walton area of Liverpool, England. It has been the home stadium of Premier League club Everton F.C. since its completion in 1892. Located in a residential area 2 miles (3 km) north of Liverpool ...
in Conlan's hometown of
Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...
, and many parallels emerge between the bout that ensues, and Apollo and Rocky's first fight forty years earlier. First, before entering the ring, Donnie receives a present from Mary Anne — new American flag trunks similar to the ones Apollo and later Rocky wore. Additionally, to the surprise of nearly everyone, Donnie gives Conlan all he can handle. Conlan knocks Donnie down, but Donnie recovers to knock Conlan down for the first time in his career. Donnie goes the distance, but Conlan wins on a
split decision A split decision (SD) is a winning criterion in boxing, most commonly in full-contact combat sports, in which two of the three judges score one particular competitor as the winner, while the third judge scores for the other competitor. A split dec ...
, and Donnie has won the respect of Conlan and the crowd. As
Max Kellerman Max Kellerman (born August 6, 1973) is an American sports television personality and boxing commentator. He is the host of ''This Just In with Max Kellerman'' and the co-host of ''Keyshawn, JWill and Max'' on ESPN Radio. He previously was a co-h ...
puts it while calling the fight for
HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is ba ...
, "Ricky Conlan won the fight, but Adonis Creed won the night." Conlan tells Donnie that he is the future of the light heavyweight division. The film ends with Donnie and a frail but improving Rocky climbing the 72 steps outside the entrance of the
Philadelphia Museum of Art The Philadelphia Museum of Art (PMoA) is an art museum originally chartered in 1876 for the Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia. The main museum building was completed in 1928 on Fairmount, a hill located at the northwest end of the Benjamin Fr ...
.


Cast

*
Michael B. Jordan Michael Bakari Jordan (; born February 9, 1987) is an American actor. He is known for his film roles as shooting victim Oscar Grant in the drama ''Fruitvale Station'' (2013), boxer Adonis Creed in ''Creed'' (2015), and Erik Killmonger in ''Bl ...
as Adonis "Donnie" Creed (born Johnson): An underdog but talented light heavyweight boxer and the son of world heavyweight champion
Apollo Creed Apollo Creed is a fictional character from the ''Rocky'' films, played by Carl Weathers. He serves as the main antagonist in ''Rocky'' and '' Rocky II'' and also appears in ''Rocky III'' and ''Rocky IV''. He is a tough but agile boxer w ...
. ** Alex Henderson as young Adonis "Donnie" Johnson * Sylvester Stallone as Robert "Rocky" Balboa: A two-time world heavyweight champion and Apollo's rival-turned-friend who becomes Donnie's trainer and mentor. He owns and operates an Italian restaurant in Philadelphia named after his deceased wife
Adrian Adrian is a form of the Latin language, Latin given name Adrianus (given name), Adrianus or Hadrianus (disambiguation), Hadrianus. Its ultimate origin is most likely via the former river Adria (river), Adria from the Venetic language, Venetic and ...
(played by
Talia Shire Talia Rose Shire ( née Coppola; born April 25, 1946) is an American actress who played roles as Connie Corleone in ''The Godfather'' films and Adrian Balboa in the ''Rocky'' series. For her work in ''The Godfather Part II'' and ''Rocky'', Shir ...
in previous films). *
Tessa Thompson Tessa Lynne Thompson (born October 3, 1983) is an American actress. She began her professional acting career with the Los Angeles Women's Shakespeare Company while studying at Santa Monica College. She appeared in productions of '' The Tempest ...
as
Bianca Bianca is a feminine given name. It means "white" and is an Italian cognate of Blanche. Variants * Blanche: French * Bianca: Italian * Bianka ( Polish, Hungarian, Slovak, German, English, French, Icelandic, Finnish, Dutch, Norwegian, C ...
: A singer-songwriter with a hearing impairment who becomes Donnie's love interest. *
Phylicia Rashad Phylicia Rashad ( ) ( née Ayers-Allen; born June 19, 1948) is an American actress, singer and director who is dean of the College of Fine Arts at Howard University. She is best known for her role as Clair Huxtable on the NBC sitcom ''The Cosby ...
as Mary Anne Creed: Apollo's widow and Donnie's stepmother, who takes in Donnie as a child following the death of Donnie's biological mother. *
Tony Bellew Anthony Lewis Bellew (born 30 November 1982) is an English former professional boxer who competed from 2007 to 2018, and has since worked as a boxing analyst and commentator. He held the WBC cruiserweight title from 2016 to 2017, and challeng ...
as "Pretty" Ricky Conlan: A highly formidable yet arrogant British boxer and the world light heavyweight champion. *
Graham McTavish Graham McTavish (born 4 January 1961) is a Scottish actor and author. He is known for his roles as Dwalin in '' The Hobbit'' film trilogy, Vlad Dracula Țepeș in the Netflix animated franchise ''Castlevania'', Loki in various Marvel animated ...
as Tommy Holiday: Conlan's trainer. *
Wood Harris Sherwin David "Wood" Harris (born October 17, 1969) is an American actor. He has portrayed the drug kingpin Avon Barksdale on the HBO crime drama ''The Wire'', cocaine dealer Ace in '' Paid in Full'' and high school football player Julius Campbe ...
as Tony "Little Duke" Evers: One of Danny Wheeler's assistant trainers, the son of Apollo's, then Rocky's, trainer,
Tony "Duke" Evers This is a list of characters from the ''Rocky'' film series, consisting of ''Rocky'' (1976), '' Rocky II'' (1979), ''Rocky III'' (1982), ''Rocky IV'' (1985), ''Rocky V'' (1990), '' Rocky Balboa'' (2006), '' Creed'' (2015), ''Creed II'' (2018) a ...
*
Ritchie Coster Ritchie Coster (born 1 July 1967) is an English actor. He is best known for playing the roles of Dietrich Banning in '' The Tuxedo'' (2002), the Chechen in ''The Dark Knight'' (2008), Elias Kassar in '' Blackhat'' (2015), Mayor Austin Chessani o ...
as Pete Sporino *
Tone Trump Tony Lamar Brice (born 1987), better known by his stage name Tone Trump, is an American rapper. Biography Tone Trump was born in Philadelphia and raised by a Muslim family, later changing his name to Abdul Sallam.Mortice, ZachHip-Hop for Alla ...
as himself *
Brian Anthony Wilson Brian Anthony Wilson (born February 22, 1960) is an American film and television actor. He first appeared in the 1997 film '' The Postman'' as Woody. Wilson was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the la ...
as James A number of figures (real-life fighters and trainers) from boxing play in the film: *
Andre Ward Andre Michael Ward (born February 23, 1984) is an American former professional boxer who competed from 2004 to 2017. He retired with an undefeated record and held multiple world titles in two weight classes, including the unified WBA (Super), ...
as Danny "Stuntman" Wheeler: A light heavyweight boxer. *
Gabriel Rosado Gabriel Rosado (born January 14, 1986) is an American professional boxer who challenged twice for a middleweight world title in 2013. Hailing from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Rosado is part of the city's large Puerto Rican community. Renowned f ...
as Leo "The Lion" Sporino: A light heavyweight boxer. * Jacob "Stitch" Duran as himself: An esteemed
cutman A cutman is a person responsible for preventing and treating physical damage to a fighter during the breaks between rounds of a full contact match such as a boxing, kickboxing or a mixed martial arts bout. Cutmen typically handle swelling, nose ...
in boxing, he previously portrayed the cutman of Mason "The Line" Dixon in '' Rocky Balboa''.
Liev Schreiber Isaac Liev Schreiber (; born October 4, 1967) is an American actor, director, screenwriter, producer, and narrator. He became known during the late 1990s and early 2000s after appearing in several independent films, and later mainstream Hollywo ...
voices an ''HBO 24/7'' announcer, while
Michael Buffer Michael Buffer (born November 2, 1944) is an American ring announcer (or " MC") for boxing, professional wrestling, and National Football League matches. He is known for his trademarked catchphrase: "Let's get ready to rumble!" Early life Bu ...
cameos as himself serving as ring announcer. Other sports media personalities who appear include
ESPN ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...
's
Tony Kornheiser Anthony Irwin Kornheiser (; born July 13, 1948) is an American television sports talk show host and former sportswriter and columnist. Kornheiser is best known for his endeavors in three forms of media: as a writer for ''The Washington Post'' fro ...
,
Michael Wilbon Michael Wilbon (; born ) is an American commentator for ESPN and former sportswriter and columnist for ''The Washington Post''. He is an analyst for ESPN and has co-hosted ''Pardon the Interruption'' on ESPN since 2001. Early life and education ...
, Hannah Storm, and
Max Kellerman Max Kellerman (born August 6, 1973) is an American sports television personality and boxing commentator. He is the host of ''This Just In with Max Kellerman'' and the co-host of ''Keyshawn, JWill and Max'' on ESPN Radio. He previously was a co-h ...
, and
HBO Sports Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is ba ...
' boxing announcer
Jim Lampley James Lampley (born April 8, 1949) is an American sportscaster, news anchor, film producer, and restaurant owner. He was best known as a blow-by-blow announcer on ''HBO World Championship Boxing'' for 30 years. He also had covered a record 14 O ...
. Archive footage of
Carl Weathers Carl Weathers (born January 14, 1948) is an American actor and former professional football player. He is known for his roles as boxer Apollo Creed in the first four ''Rocky'' films (1976–85), George Dillon in '' Predator'' (1987), Action Ja ...
'
Apollo Creed Apollo Creed is a fictional character from the ''Rocky'' films, played by Carl Weathers. He serves as the main antagonist in ''Rocky'' and '' Rocky II'' and also appears in ''Rocky III'' and ''Rocky IV''. He is a tough but agile boxer w ...
is used throughout the film.


Production


Development and writing

On July 24, 2013, it was announced that
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by amazon (company), Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded o ...
had signed on with ''
Fruitvale Station ''Fruitvale Station'' is a 2013 American biographical drama film written and directed by Ryan Coogler. It is Coogler's feature directorial debut and is based on the events leading to the death of Oscar Grant, a young man killed in 2009 by Bay ...
'' director
Ryan Coogler Ryan Kyle Coogler (born May 23, 1986) is an American film director, producer and screenwriter. He is a recipient of four NAACP Image Awards, four Black Reel Awards, a Golden Globe Award nomination and an Academy Award nomination for Best Pictu ...
to direct a spin-off of ''
Rocky ''Rocky'' is a 1976 American sports drama film directed by John G. Avildsen and written by and starring Sylvester Stallone. It is the first installment in the ''Rocky'' franchise and stars Talia Shire, Burt Young, Carl Weathers, and Burgess M ...
'', a seventh film in the ''Rocky'' series, which Coogler would also co-write with Aaron Covington. Sylvester Stallone also worked on the screenplay for the seventh film. The film would focus on a man following in the footsteps of his late father,
Apollo Creed Apollo Creed is a fictional character from the ''Rocky'' films, played by Carl Weathers. He serves as the main antagonist in ''Rocky'' and '' Rocky II'' and also appears in ''Rocky III'' and ''Rocky IV''. He is a tough but agile boxer w ...
, and getting a mentor in the now-retired
Rocky Balboa Robert "Rocky" Balboa (also known by his ring name The Italian Stallion), is a fictional title character and the protagonist of the ''Rocky'' film series. The character was created by Sylvester Stallone, who has also portrayed him in all eigh ...
.
Michael B. Jordan Michael Bakari Jordan (; born February 9, 1987) is an American actor. He is known for his film roles as shooting victim Oscar Grant in the drama ''Fruitvale Station'' (2013), boxer Adonis Creed in ''Creed'' (2015), and Erik Killmonger in ''Bl ...
was set for the role of Creed's son, Adonis "Donnie" Creed, and Stallone was set to reprise his character of Rocky. Original producers
Irwin Winkler Irwin Winkler (born May 28, 1931) is an American film producer and director. He is the producer or director of over 58 motion pictures, dating back to 1967's '' Double Trouble'', starring Elvis Presley. The fourth film he produced, '' They Shoot ...
and
Robert Chartoff Robert Irwin Chartoff (August 26, 1933 – June 10, 2015) was an American film producer and philanthropist. Early life and education Chartoff was born on August 26, 1933 in New York City, the son of Bessie and William Chartoff. His family was J ...
would produce, along with Stallone and Kevin King-Templeton. On April 25, 2014, while talking to '' THR'', Coogler stated that he had sent his latest draft to the studio, and confirmed the involvement of Jordan and Stallone. In an interview with Ellen, Sylvester Stallone reasoned why he refused to write Creed. He referred to a generational gap between the time when he wrote Rocky (1976) and the time when Creed would be making its appearance on the silver screen.


Pre-production

On November 10, real-life boxers
Tony Bellew Anthony Lewis Bellew (born 30 November 1982) is an English former professional boxer who competed from 2007 to 2018, and has since worked as a boxing analyst and commentator. He held the WBC cruiserweight title from 2016 to 2017, and challeng ...
and
Andre Ward Andre Michael Ward (born February 23, 1984) is an American former professional boxer who competed from 2004 to 2017. He retired with an undefeated record and held multiple world titles in two weight classes, including the unified WBA (Super), ...
joined the film, with Bellew to play a fighter, "Pretty" Ricky Conlan, the main opponent for Creed. Shooting was set to begin in January 2015, in
Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...
and
Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
. On December 16,
Tessa Thompson Tessa Lynne Thompson (born October 3, 1983) is an American actress. She began her professional acting career with the Los Angeles Women's Shakespeare Company while studying at Santa Monica College. She appeared in productions of '' The Tempest ...
was added to the cast as the female lead. On January 8, 2015,
Phylicia Rashad Phylicia Rashad ( ) ( née Ayers-Allen; born June 19, 1948) is an American actress, singer and director who is dean of the College of Fine Arts at Howard University. She is best known for her role as Clair Huxtable on the NBC sitcom ''The Cosby ...
reportedly joined the film to play Mary Anne Creed, Apollo's widow. Sylvia Meals, who portrayed Mrs. Creed in ''Rocky II'' and ''Rocky IV'' had died in 2011. On January 21,
Graham McTavish Graham McTavish (born 4 January 1961) is a Scottish actor and author. He is known for his roles as Dwalin in '' The Hobbit'' film trilogy, Vlad Dracula Țepeș in the Netflix animated franchise ''Castlevania'', Loki in various Marvel animated ...
tweeted about his involvement in the film.


Filming

Principal photography Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production. Personnel Besides the main film personnel, such as actor ...
began on January 19, 2015 on location at Goodison Park, with the first scene shot taking place during a Barclays Premier League football match between Everton (of which Stallone and native Evertonian Bellew are fans) and
West Bromwich Albion West Bromwich Albion Football Club () is an English professional football club based in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football. The club was formed in 1878 and has pl ...
. Goodison would later host both the climactic film fight between Donnie and Conlan and also Bellew's real-life title fight against Ilunga Makabu in May 2016, which was the first outdoor boxing match in Liverpool since 1949. Filming also took place in
Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
. In early February, an empty store in Philadelphia was converted into a boxing gym, where some training scenes were shot. On February 13, the crew was spotted filming in the Victor Cafe in
South Philadelphia South Philadelphia, nicknamed South Philly, is the section of Philadelphia bounded by South Street to the north, the Delaware River to the east and south and the Schuylkill River to the west.Sun Center Studios in Aston Township.


Music


Soundtrack

The musical score for ''Creed'' was written by Swedish composer
Ludwig Göransson Ludwig Emil Tomas Göransson (; ; born 1 September 1984) is a Swedish composer, conductor and record producer. He has scored films such as ''Fruitvale Station'', the ''Rocky'' franchise entries ''Creed'' and ''Creed II'', ''Venom'', and ''Tene ...
, who is only the third composer in the history of the ''Rocky'' series, following
Bill Conti William Conti (born April 13, 1942) is an American composer and conductor, best known for his film scores, including ''Rocky'' (and four of its sequels), ''The Karate Kid'' (and all of its sequels), '' For Your Eyes Only'', ''Dynasty'' (and its ...
(''Rocky'', ''II'', ''III'', ''V'', and ''Balboa'') and
Vince DiCola Vincent Louis "Vince" DiCola (born November 11, 1957) is an American composer, keyboardist and arranger. He has composed scores for films such as '' Staying Alive'', ''Rocky IV'', and '' The Transformers: The Movie''. DiCola also pioneered the u ...
(''Rocky IV''). ''Creed'' also features a soundtrack that consists mostly of music new to the series, including hip hop tracks by artists such as
Future The future is the time after the past and present. Its arrival is considered inevitable due to the existence of time and the laws of physics. Due to the apparent nature of reality and the unavoidability of the future, everything that currently ...
,
Meek Mill Robert Rihmeek Williams (born May 6, 1987), known professionally as Meek Mill, is an American rapper. Born and raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, he embarked on his music career as a battle rapper, and later formed a short-lived rap group, ...
, and White Dave. Both a score and a soundtrack album were released on November 20, 2015 by
WaterTower Music WaterTower Music (formerly New Line Records from 2000 to 2010) is an American record label serving as the in-house music label and run by entertainment company Warner Bros., ultimately owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The name and logo are based ...
and
Atlantic Records Atlantic Recording Corporation (simply known as Atlantic Records) is an American record label founded in October 1947 by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson. Over its first 20 years of operation, Atlantic earned a reputation as one of the most i ...
, respectively. One tribute to Conti's original soundtrack is included – the track "You're a Creed" uses both "Gonna Fly Now" and "Going the Distance".


Release


Theatrical

On February 3, 2015,
Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. D ...
slated the film to be released domestically on November 25, 2015. This date coincides with the 40th anniversary of the opening scene in the original film, where Rocky fights Spider Rico.


Piracy

On December 20, 2015, screeners of numerous prospective awards contenders, including ''Creed'', were uploaded to
torrent Torrent or torrents may refer to: * A fast flowing stream Animals * Torrent duck, a species of the family Anatidae * Torrent fish * Torrent frog, various unrelated frogs * Torrent robin, a bird species * Torrent salamander, a family of s ...
sites. The
FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and its principal Federal law enforcement in the United States, federal law enforcement age ...
has linked the case to co-CEO
Andrew Kosove Andrew A. Kosove is an American film and television producer who has produced 35 films. He was nominated for an Academy Award for the film '' The Blind Side''. Alongside his producing partner, Broderick Johnson, he is the co-founder and co-CEO o ...
of
Alcon Entertainment Alcon Entertainment, LLC is an American film production company, founded in 1997 by film producers Broderick Johnson and Andrew Kosove. Since its establishment, Alcon Entertainment has developed and financed films that are ultimately distribut ...
. Kosove claimed that he had "never seen this DVD", and that "it never touched his hands".


Reception


Box office

''Creed'' grossed $109.8 million in North America and $63.8 million in other territories for a worldwide total of $173.6 million, against a budget of $35 million. In North America, ''Creed'' opened on Wednesday, November 25, 2015, alongside ''
The Good Dinosaur ''The Good Dinosaur'' is a 2015 American computer-animated adventure film produced by Pixar Animation Studios and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures. The film was directed by Peter Sohn (in his feature directorial debut) an ...
'' and ''
Victor Frankenstein Victor Frankenstein is a fictional character and the main protagonist and title character in Mary Shelley's 1818 novel, ''Frankenstein, Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus''.. He is an Italians, Italian-Swiss scientist (born in Naples, Italy ...
'', as well as the expanding wide releases of ''
Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...
'', ''
Spotlight Spotlight or spot light may refer to: Lighting * Spot lights, automotive auxiliary lamps * Spotlight (theatre lighting) * Spotlight, a searchlight * Stage lighting instrument, stage lighting instruments, of several types Art, entertainment, an ...
'' and '' Trumbo''. The film ended up grossing $42.6 million in its first five days, including $30.1 million in its opening weekend, finishing third at the box office.


Critical response

The ''
Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...
'' reported that the film received "early critical raves". On
review aggregator A review aggregator is a system that collects reviews of products and services (such as films, books, video games, software, hardware, and cars). This system stores the reviews and uses them for purposes such as supporting a website where users ...
website
Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...
, the film holds an approval rating of 95% based on 312 reviews, with an average rating of 7.90/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "''Creed'' brings the ''Rocky'' franchise off the mat for a surprisingly effective seventh round that extends the boxer's saga in interesting new directions while staying true to its classic predecessors' roots." On
Metacritic Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...
, the film has a weighted average score of 82 out of 100, based on 42 critics, indicating "universal acclaim". Audiences polled by
CinemaScore CinemaScore is a market research firm based in Las Vegas. It surveys film audiences to rate their viewing experiences with letter grades, reports the results, and forecasts box office receipts based on the data. Background Ed Mintz founded Ci ...
gave the film an average grade of "A" on an A+ to F scale, while
PostTrak PostTrak is a U.S.-based service that surveys film audiences for film studios. History The service conducts surveys in the top 20 markets in the U.S. and Canada with the use of polling cards and electronic kiosks. A PostTrak report for a film ...
reported filmgoers gave it an overall positive score of 85%. ''A.V. Wire''s Herman Dhaliwal gave the film a very positive review, writing, "I will say the film was everything I could have ever wanted and then some. It's a film that could have gone so wrong in so many ways so easily, but the results show something that is genuine and inspired. It takes the smartest possible routes with the story it wants to tell and delivers in basically every way it needed to.
Ryan Coogler Ryan Kyle Coogler (born May 23, 1986) is an American film director, producer and screenwriter. He is a recipient of four NAACP Image Awards, four Black Reel Awards, a Golden Globe Award nomination and an Academy Award nomination for Best Pictu ...
cements himself as one of the best rising filmmakers working today, as he crafts an emotional, funny, compelling and uplifting film that is full of strong performances." Andrew Barker of ''
Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
'' stated that the film lives up to the expectation of its predecessors, while forging its own unique path. He also appreciated the performances of Stallone and Jordan, saying that Stallone deserved credit for taking a chance on young director Coogler, and that his trust had paid off. He concluded that the director "offered a smart, kinetic, exhilaratingly well-crafted piece of mainstream filmmaking".
IGN ''IGN'' (formerly ''Imagine Games Network'') is an American video game and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa distri ...
reviewer John Lasser gave the film an 8.5 out of 10, saying, "''Creed'' is a mirror of Rocky's story and we have all been watching that unfold on the big screen for decades. Coogler's film does nothing to break the mold. Rather, it shows that the mold exists for a reason. Jordan delivers a knockout performance, and Stallone does as well. In the end, we can all only hope that we'll get to see Adonis on screen for just as long as we've seen Rocky." The screenplay was ranked the 22nd best American screenplay of the 21st century in
IndieWire IndieWire (sometimes stylized as indieWIRE or Indiewire) is a film industry and review website that was established in 1996. The site's focus was predominantly independent film, although its coverage has grown to "to include all aspects of Hollyw ...
, with Zack Sharf writing, "Not only does the script manage to tell an authentic origin story of the young and determined Adonis Creed, but it also finds an authentic way to revive Sylvester Stallone's Rocky and make him the emotional lynchpin of Adonis' rise to champion boxer."


Accolades


Other media


Sequels

In January 2016, Sylvester Stallone and MGM CEO
Gary Barber Gary Barber (born 1957) is a South African-born American film producer. Barber was the chairman and CEO of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. He is also co-founder of Spyglass Entertainment. Biography Barber was born to a Jewish family in Johannesburg, So ...
confirmed that a sequel to ''Creed'' was in development. That same month, Stallone posed the possibility of seeing Milo Ventimiglia appear in the sequel, reprising his role as Rocky's son Robert Balboa from '' Rocky Balboa''. Ventimiglia previously revealed during the development of ''Creed'' that he was open to returning to the franchise, stating, "I'll tell you what, if they invited me, I'd love to be there. If they didn't, I wouldn't be offended." Also that month, it was reported that the sequel's release was tentatively set for November 2017, although it was later pushed back to an unconfirmed date. Development was seemingly delayed by the announcement Coogler had cast Michael B. Jordan in his next film, Marvel's ''
Black Panther A black panther is the melanistic colour variant of the leopard (''Panthera pardus'') and the jaguar (''Panthera onca''). Black panthers of both species have excess black pigments, but their typical rosettes are also present. They have been d ...
'', thus delaying production until both men's schedules permitted. A confrontation between Adonis "Donnie" Creed and Ivan Drago was hinted at on
Instagram Instagram is a photo and video sharing social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. The app allows users to upload media that can be edited with filters and organized by hashtags and geographical tagging. Posts can ...
. Stallone later confirmed that he had finished writing the script for the sequel, which would see
Dolph Lundgren Hans Lundgren (, ; born 3 November 1957), better known as Dolph Lundgren, is a Swedish actor, filmmaker and martial artist. His breakthrough came in 1985, when he starred in ''Rocky IV'' as the imposing Soviet boxer Ivan Drago. Since then, Lu ...
reprising his role as
Ivan Drago Ivan Vasilyevich Drago (russian: Иван Васильевич Драго, ) is a Soviet-Russian fictional character from the ''Rocky'' film series. He first appears in the 1985 film '' Rocky IV'', in which he is the central antagonist and ri ...
from ''Rocky IV''. By October 2017, Stallone stated on his social media page that he would direct the film, however, by December of the same year, Steven Caple Jr. was announced as the director of ''Creed II''. Boxer Florian Munteanu was cast as Drago's son. In an interview on ''
The Ellen DeGeneres Show ''The Ellen DeGeneres Show'' (often shortened to ''Ellen'' or ''The Ellen Show'') is an American daytime television variety comedy talk show that was created and hosted by its namesake Ellen DeGeneres. Debuting on September 8, 2003, it was prod ...
'', Jordan confirmed that ''Creed II'' was his next project. The film was released in 2018. A sequel, ''Creed III'', directed by Jordan in his
directorial debut This is a list of film directorial debuts in chronological order. The films and dates referred to are a director's first commercial cinematic release. Many film makers have directed works which were not commercially released, for example early work ...
, is scheduled to be released on March 3, 2023.


Video game

'' Creed: Rise to Glory'' – Released in 2018


Notes


References


External links

* * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Creed 2015 films 2010s coming-of-age drama films 2010s sports drama films American coming-of-age drama films American sequel films American sports drama films African-American drama films 2010s English-language films Film spin-offs Films about old age Films about orphans Films directed by Ryan Coogler Films featuring a Best Supporting Actor Golden Globe winning performance Films produced by Irwin Winkler Films scored by Ludwig Göransson Films set in 1998 Films set in 2015 Films set in Liverpool Films set in Los Angeles Films set in Philadelphia Films set in Tijuana Films shot in London Films shot in Liverpool Films shot in Philadelphia Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer films New Line Cinema films Warner Bros. films Rocky (film series) films 2015 drama films 2010s American films