Sylvester Stallone Reacts to I Play Rocky Biopic and Rocky V Redux

Sylvester Stallone’s real-life journey to creating the 1976 boxing classic Rocky is coming to the screen in the new biopic I Play Rocky, which premiered earlier in September at the Toronto International Film Festival. Directed by Peter Farrelly and starring Anthony Ippolito as a young Stallone, the feature film explores the turbulent production history behind the sports drama that launched an enduring cinematic franchise. He recalled thinking, I’m not dead yet. Aren’t we jumping the gun a little bit? However, his perspective shifted once he saw footage of Ippolito in character. Stallone told moderator Tracy Smith of CBS Sunday Morning that upon watching a video test, he walked over to his daughter and declared, This is incredible.

Stallone Keeps Hands Off Farrelly Production

Despite having his life story adapted for the big screen, Stallone emphasized that he has maintained a completely hands-off approach to the production. He noted that he has nothing to do with the film itself and chose simply to lean back and watch the creative team work independently.

I said, ‘If you have any questions, I’m here.’ And that was it. They did everything themselves, Stallone said during the conversation.

When first confronting Ippolito’s mimicry of his distinct cadence and performance style, Stallone experienced a moment of self-reflection. He caught himself wondering out loud, Do I really talk like that? before concluding that the actor’s portrayal was accurate.

A Push for a Rocky V Director’s Cut

Beyond the new biopic, Stallone turned his critical eye toward his own filmography, singling out the 1970s legacy and a specific franchise misfire. Watching older entries in the Rocky series feels to him like looking at an old photograph where everyone else loves the image while he just grunts in disapproval.

The actor revealed his ongoing frustration with 1990’s Rocky V, which he labeled a thorn in my flesh. He expressed a desire to convince Amazon to grant him the opportunity to assemble a new cut of the film. It bothers me wildly because I know I took my foot off the gas back then, Stallone said, adding that he should have directed the project himself and avoided leaning into choices meant solely to look cool to audiences. If permitted to recut the film, he joked that the new version would not be magnificent, but it would at least be acceptable.

Industry Shifts and Modern Hollywood

Stallone doubted he could achieve similar stardom if he were starting his career in today's entertainment industry. He pointed to a fundamentally different ideology and casting standard operating in the industry today, noting that modern actors look and perform differently.

Action feels sort of anachronistic nowadays, Stallone said. He argued that timeless films like The Pate could not be cast or made today because such projects relied heavily on a specific societal climate, zeitgeist, ethnicity, and historical moment that cannot be easily replicated through modern remakes. The 92NY conversation served as the launch event for CBS Sunday Morning at 92NY, a live interview series featuring notable figures across the arts and public life.