Sylvester Stallone Has a Hilariously Honest Reaction to His ‘I Play Rocky’ Biopic
Few Hollywood origin stories are as legendary as the making of ‘Rocky’, and now that tale is getting its own movie in ‘I Play Rocky’. The film follows the making of the 1976 classic, with Anthony Ippolito playing a young Sylvester Stallone as he develops the project and pushes it through a tumultuous production. Directed by Peter Farrelly, it premiered to plenty of fanfare at the Toronto International Film Festival earlier this month.
Ippolito is no stranger to playing Hollywood icons. He was cast as Stallone in August 2025, after previously portraying Al Pacino in the Paramount+ series ‘The Offer’ about the making of ‘The Godfather’. When the ‘I Play Rocky’ trailer debuted at CinemaCon, Variety even called him a dead ringer for the star.
So how does the real Rocky feel about all this? During a chat at 92NY on Monday promoting his new memoir ‘The Steps’, Stallone admitted his feelings were initially mixed. “I’m not dead yet. Aren’t we jumping the gun?” he joked, as reported by The Hollywood Reporter.
He was also quick to stress that he had nothing to do with the production. Stallone explained that he simply decided to sit back and watch, telling Ippolito he was available for any questions, but otherwise leaving the filmmakers to do it all on their own.
Seeing someone else play him clearly gave him a new perspective. After watching Ippolito’s performance, Stallone quipped, “Do I talk like that? Now I get it.”
The conversation also touched on how Stallone views his own work today. He compared watching the ‘Rocky’ movies to looking at a photo of yourself that everyone else loves while you can only grimace at it.
One film in particular still stings. Stallone revealed he’s trying to get Amazon to let him recut 1990’s ‘Rocky V’, calling it “a thorn in my side.” He added, “It bothers me to death because I know I took my foot off the gas,” noting that he should have directed it himself.
The first trailer for ‘I PLAY ROCKY’ has been released.
— DiscussingFilm (@DiscussingFilm) July 15, 2026
The film follows a young Sylvester Stallone & the dramatic journey it took to get ‘ROCKY’ made.
In theaters on November 20. pic.twitter.com/yg5ePlhW43
The biopic chatter comes during a remarkably busy stretch for Stallone. His memoir ‘The Steps’ is framed between his arrival in New York City in 1969 and the triumph of ‘Rocky’ at the 1977 Academy Awards. He’s also continuing to star in ‘Tulsa King’.
The book has already made headlines for its candor. In promoting it, Stallone has opened up about his difficult upbringing and personal struggles, including a story about his father sparking an altercation on the set of ‘Rocky’.
Audiences won’t have to wait long to judge Ippolito’s performance for themselves. ‘I Play Rocky’ opens in limited US theaters on November 6 before expanding nationwide on November 20, with Matt Dillon playing Stallone’s father.
The film also earned an early vote of confidence in Toronto, where it placed as first runner-up for the festival’s People’s Choice Award. On top of that, fans who attend the ‘Rocky’ 50th anniversary screenings from November 7 to 11 will get an exclusive featurette from the biopic.
For a man whose life story is now the subject of a Hollywood movie, Stallone seems to be taking it all in stride. His playful reaction shows the same self-deprecating wit fans have come to love over 5 decades. And if his candid reflections on ‘Rocky V’ are any indication, he’s still very much writing the next chapters of his career, so perhaps a biopic really is a little early.
What do you think of Sylvester Stallone’s reaction to the I Play Rocky biopic?
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