Before Rocky Was a Legend
What if the greatest underdog story in movie history had an even greater underdog story behind it?
That is the fascinating premise of I Play Rocky, which had its Toronto International Film Festival premiere in Toronto, taking audiences back to the moment when an unknown actor named Sylvester Stallone refused to let Hollywood tell him who could play Rocky Balboa.
Directed by Peter Farrelly and written by Peter Gamble, the film dramatizes Stallone’s extraordinary determination to bring his screenplay for Rocky to the screen. He was repeatedly told “no,” but there was one thing he wouldn’t compromise on: he had to play Rocky.
Betting Everything on Himself
With his career—and future—in the balance, Stallone bet everything on a character he believed he was meant to embody. The result would become Rocky, one of cinema’s defining underdog films and a cultural phenomenon that continues to inspire audiences nearly five decades later.
I Play Rocky offers a look at the unlikely journey behind that phenomenon, reminding us that sometimes the most compelling Hollywood stories aren’t about stars at the top of their game, but about the unknowns who refuse to give up before they’ve had their chance.
Anthony Ippolito stars as Stallone, alongside AnnaSophia Robb, Toby Kebbell, P.J. Byrne, Jay Duplass and Kiki Seto, with Matt Dillon, Stephan James and Tracy Letts.
From TIFF to Theaters
Following its TIFF premiere, I Play Rocky opens in select theaters November 6, before expanding to theaters nationwide in November. Watch the official film Trailer
For movie lovers, it’s a chance to revisit the origins of one of Hollywood’s most enduring success stories—and discover the extraordinary gamble that came before the legend.
I Play Rocky, Official Amazon MGM Studios website
