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The 1976 boxing drama “Rocky” turned its lead actor and screenwriter, Sylvester Stallone, then almost penniless and little known, into one of Hollywood's biggest stars. A new film, “I Play Rocky,” brings that story to the screen.
Peter Farrelly directs “I Play Rocky” from a script by Peter Gamble. Anthony Ippolito plays Stallone, and the cast includes Matt Dillon, AnnaSophia Robb and Stephan James.
The film premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2026 and is opening in cinemas in November.
The film opens in the early 1970s, with Stallone living on New York's streets. His only companion is his dog, Butkus. He attends auditions for roles he doesn't get, works long hours cleaning fish, and faces mockery for his ambition to become an actor.
Stallone later moves to Los Angeles, where he remains poor. The film shows him temporarily selling Butkus because he cannot afford to keep him.
Variety reports that Stallone sold the dog for $40 and later bought him back for $15,000, while other outlets cite $50. Stallone writes the first draft of “Rocky” in three days.
After numerous obstacles on the way to production, “Rocky” became the highest-grossing film of 1976. It received 10 nominations at the Academy Awards held in 1977 and won three awards, including Best Picture. Stallone was nominated for Best Actor and Best Original Screenplay.
Director John G. Avildsen filmed “Rocky” in 28 days, a schedule often cited in cinema history. Stallone reportedly caused lasting damage to his knuckles while filming the scene in which Rocky punches slabs of frozen meat.
Accounts from the production say few people on set believed in Stallone and that the studio allegedly disliked the finished film.
According to Emma Jones of the BBC, few stories in film history show a person’s fortunes changing as dramatically as Stallone’s, who went from living on the streets to becoming one of the most prominent figures at the Oscar ceremony.
In his latest memoir, “The Steps,” Stallone describes the moment that inspired “Rocky,” drawing on his struggle to succeed as an actor.
He says he believed others could relate to the feelings of rejection that both he and the character experienced while he was writing the script.
Stallone has said he had no involvement in “I Play Rocky.”
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