I Play Rocky (2026) — The True Story of How Sylvester Stallone Fought to Make Rocky

The film is directed by Peter Farrelly (Green Book) and written by Peter Gamble. Anthony Ippolito stars as a young Sylvester Stallone, capturing the hunger and stubbornness of an unknown actor who believed he was born to play Rocky Balboa. The supporting cast is stacked: AnnaSophia Robb plays Stallone's wife Sasha Czack, Toby Kebbell plays producer Robert Chartoff, P. J. Byrne plays producer Irwin Winkler, Jay Duplass plays director John Avildsen, Matt Dillon plays Stallone's father Frank Stallone Sr., Stephan James plays Carl Weathers — the man who played Apollo Creed — and Tracy Letts also stars.

The story begins in the mid-1970s. Stallone is a struggling actor with almost no money, living on the edge in New York and Los Angeles. He watches a boxing match, goes home, and writes the script for Rocky in just a few days. Studios love the script and offer him big money for it — but only if a famous star plays Rocky. Stallone says no, again and again. He is told he is not handsome enough, not famous enough, and not the right choice. He holds his ground anyway, betting everything on himself.

That gamble paid off in real life. The original Rocky (1976) cost just over $1 million to make, was shot in 28 days, earned about $225 million worldwide, became the highest-grossing film of 1976, and won three Academy Awards, including Best Picture. The franchise it started has since earned about $1.9 billion around the world. I Play Rocky shows the fight behind that fight — the rejection, the poverty, and the belief that would not quit.

I Play Rocky premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 12, 2026, where it was first runner-up for the People's Choice Award. Amazon MGM Studios released it in a limited run in US theaters on November 6, 2026, and it expands nationwide on November 20, 2026.

The limited opening was strong. The film earned $337,465 in its first weekend from only 7 theaters — a per-theater average of about $48,209, one of the best of the year for a limited release. Its total so far is about $367,867. Those are real results from the limited run, not forecasts, and they suggest the film could find a much bigger audience when it goes wide on November 20.

Critics and audiences agree it works. The film holds an 88% critics score and a 97% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes — the highest audience score of any film in the Rocky franchise. Reviewers have praised Anthony Ippolito's performance and the film's warm, funny, emotional take on a story every movie fan already knows the ending to.

One thing to know: Sylvester Stallone himself is not involved in the film. He has said he had "zero to do with it," though he later said he thought the film told his story well. The film runs about 127 minutes.

If you love Rocky, this is the movie behind the movie — and it is the perfect film to see before it goes wide on November 20.

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Will you be watching I Play Rocky when it goes wide? Tell us in the comments.