Fans Can’t Get Over How Much the ‘I Play Rocky’ Actor Looks Like Burt Young’s Paulie

Peter Farrelly’s ‘I Play Rocky’ is winning praise for recreating the gritty world behind one of cinema’s great underdog stories, and fans can’t stop talking about one casting choice in particular. The film follows the development and production of 1976’s ‘Rocky’, with Anthony Ippolito starring as a young Sylvester Stallone. Farrelly, the Oscar-winning director of ‘Green Book’, directs from a screenplay by Peter Gamble.

The film’s timing is deliberate. Amazon MGM Studios released it to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the original ‘Rocky’, which debuted on November 21, 1976. The cast also includes Stephan James as Carl Weathers, AnnaSophia Robb as Stallone’s first wife Sasha Czack, and Matt Dillon as Frank Stallone Sr.

Now one supporting performer is getting plenty of attention online. A side-by-side image shared by CoveredGeekly shows actor Scott Teller as Burt Young, who played Paulie in the original film, and fans have been stunned by the resemblance. In the photo, Teller wears Paulie’s familiar hat, scarf, and white butcher’s coat, standing next to Ippolito’s Stallone in a meat locker.

Teller is a local Philadelphia actor, according to FOX29’s coverage of the film’s premiere in the city. The casting adds an extra layer of hometown authenticity to a movie built around Philadelphia’s most famous fictional boxer.

Fans are in shock at how much the actor who plays Paulie in I Play Rocky looks like the original actor Actor Scot Teller plays the late Burt Young in the movie https://t.co/b1cT6S3912

— CoveredGeekly (@CoveredGeekly) November 8, 2026

He has big shoes to fill. Burt Young played Paulie Pennino, Rocky’s rough-but-loyal best friend, cornerman and brother-in-law, in 6 ‘Rocky’ films. His performance in the original earned him an Oscar nomination for best supporting actor.

Young’s real life was almost as colorful as Paulie’s. Born Gerald Tommaso DeLouise in New York City, he served in the Marines from 1957 to 1959 and boxed regularly, winning 32 of his 34 bouts. He broke into acting in 1969 and went on to rack up more than 160 film and TV roles.

New trailer for ‘I PLAY ROCKY’. The film follows a young Sylvester Stallone & the dramatic journey it took to get ‘ROCKY’ made. In theaters on November 20. https://t.co/aT3Z3XQTOX

— DiscussingFilm (@DiscussingFilm) October 22, 2026

‘Rocky’ was nominated for 10 Oscars, and Young lost the supporting actor race to Jason Robards in ‘All the President’s Men’. As the sequels went on, Paulie softened and became the franchise’s comic relief, always convinced Rocky was about to get clobbered. Young died in Los Angeles on October 8, 2023, at the age of 83. His daughter confirmed the news, and Stallone paid tribute to him on Instagram.

Teller isn’t the only lookalike drawing praise. Ippolito has been called a spot-on match for Stallone, and SlashFilm described his lead performance as uncanny, crediting it with holding the film together. The actor previously played a young Al Pacino in ‘The Offer’.

His path to the role was just as determined as Stallone’s. When Ippolito learned about the project, he rigged up a punching bag in his grandmother’s basement and improvised his own audition, even though nobody had asked him to try out.

The film tells the story of an unknown actor who refused to sell his script unless he could play the lead. RogerEbert.com noted that Stallone turned down a writer’s fee that rose to more than $300,000 in 1976 dollars because he insisted on starring in what he called his story.

‘I Play Rocky’ held its premiere in Philadelphia ahead of its opening, and reviews have been positive so far. With its eye for detail, right down to the faces in Rocky’s corner, the film is clearly aiming to honor everyone who helped turn a $1 million underdog project into a phenomenon.

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