Some time ago Sylvester Stallone announced that he was done with boxing movies, but it seems that there is one more story that needs to be told. It is of course about “Rocky”.
Rocky Balboa seems doomed from the start—he can’t read or write, his boxing career is over before it even begins. But there’s a glimmer of hope when someone finally reaches out to him—Apollo Creed, who offers Rocky a fight with the heavyweight champion. This fight isn’t just about the title—it’s about self-respect and the belief that anyone can rise up and become a hero.
Now Sylvester Stallone wants to bring viewers closer to what happened before the events of the 1976 film. The actor revealed that he is working on a script.
The Rocky prequel is very close to my heart. I’m a few pages in, and the story pretty much writes itself. We meet Adrian as a 15-year-old, Rocky as a 17-year-old, Paulie… They’re living in a new neighborhood, and Rocky’s a real rascal. It’s almost like ‘The Tramp in Love’only with real people. It’s going to be great,” he said on the “Inspire Me” podcast.
It is worth noting, however, that Stallone does not have the rights to the franchise – they belong to producer Irwin Winkler, and there has been a conflict between the gentlemen for years. The actor received about $75,000 for his role in the first film (for the script and acting) plus royalties, which amounted to about $2.5 million.
Stallone said he didn’t push the ownership issue at the time because “there was a code of conduct in the business.” When he later brought it up, he was told he “got paid fairly.”
Maybe if the actor manages to convince one of the larger studios, the matter will have a chance to be resolved and work on the film will be able to start in full swing.