Carl Weatherswas so closely identified with the role of Apollo Creed in theRockyfilm series throughout his career that when Weathers died at the age of 76, it was as if Apollo died a second time. While Weathers successfully reinvented himself as a television director and veteran character actor in his later career, the actor achieved timelessness through theRockyseries, in which he was 28 when the firstRockyfilm was released in 1976.
As theRockyfilm series, in which Weathers appears opposite titular series star Sylvester Stallone in the first four films, brought him a degree of immortality, it can be argued that Apollo’s presence within the series, in life and death, has been as powerful as that of Stallone’s Rocky Balboa.
Indeed, without Apollo, the legend of Rocky Balboa would have remained a dream. Moreover, if Rocky had defeated Apollo inRocky, in which the boxer retained his heavyweight title over Rocky via a split decision victory, he would likely have ceased to exist thereafter. However, by extending the conflict between Apollo and Rocky into the 1979 sequel,Rocky II, Stallone, the writer, enabled the character to transform from a two-dimensional figure to a continual source of inspiration within the film series, in which Apollo’s influence was most deeply felt after he died.
Apollo Creed and Rocky Balboa Needed Each Other
Rocky Balboa is a struggling boxer trying to make the big time. Working in a meat factory in Philadelphia for a pittance, he also earns extra cash as a debt collector. When heavyweight champion Apollo Creed visits Philadelphia, his managers want to set up an exhibition match between Creed and a struggling boxer, touting the fight as a chance for a “nobody” to become a “somebody”. The match is supposed to be easily won by Creed, but someone forgot to tell Rocky, who sees this as his only shot at the big time.
InRocky, Apollo Creed is introduced as a vision of athletic beauty and perfection — a seemingly invincibleheavyweight champion boxerwhose trademark stars-and-stripes boxing trunks and trash-talking personality reflect a champion whose boxing greatness is matched only by his talent for self-promotion.
As Apollo represents a vessel through which Rocky Balboa achieves greatness in the first twoRockyfilms, both films highlight Apollo’s two major weaknesses, which are pride and a tendency to underestimate his opponents. InRocky, Apollo chooses Stallone’s character as his next opponent primarily because of the marketing value of Rocky’s Italian-American lineage against the backdrop of the 1976 United States bicentennial celebration. Given Rocky’s club fighter status, Apollo sees no need to take Rocky seriously as an opponent.
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While Apollo barely defeats Rocky in their first fight, his embarrassment over the closeness of the battle gives him a wounded sense of pride, for which he feels that he must achieve a decisive victory over Rocky to achieve redemption. However, while his pride causes him to lose the heavyweight title against Rocky in their rematch, the heightened level of respect that develops between Apollo and Rocky inRocky IIheralds a close friendship and provides the primary source of inspiration for the rest of theRockyfilm series.
Apollo’s Death Revolutionized the Rocky Franchise
InRocky III, Apollo Creed serves as Balboa’s trainer for his climactic fight against the fearsome Clubber Lang. In the film’s closing scene, Rocky, after vanquishing Lang, agrees to Apollo’s request for a decisive third fight between them in the form of a private sparring match. Apollo’s insistence on the sparring match reflects his need to cling to his past glory and regain some semblance of his former greatness. This behavior continues inRocky IV, in which he unwisely initiates a supposed exhibition boxing match between himself and the colossal Russian boxer Ivan Drago, who kills the boxer with an onslaught of punches.
Apollo’s death is the primary motivational event forRocky IVand the rest of theRockyseries, especially theCreedspin-off film series. As he is killed inRocky IVpartially because of Rocky’s inability to throw in the corner towel before Drago lands the killing punch against Apollo, the boxer feels responsible for his death, which haunts him throughout the rest of the series.
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Apollo Lives on Through His Son
Apollo Creed’s legacy has been immortalized most clearly through theCreedfilm series, in which Michael B. Jordan stars as his son, Adonis “Donnie” Creed, who was conceived through an extramarital affair shortly before Apollo’s death. As theCreedfilm series, beginning with the 2015 filmCreeddocuments Donnie’s own boxing journey, the series is also rooted in the legacy of Weathers' character and the lasting repercussions of his death.
TheCreedfilms contain numerous momentsand parallels to Apollo’s existence within theRockyfilm series. InCreed, Rocky reveals to Donnie that Apollo won the sparring match that he and Rocky had at the end ofRocky III. Also, inCreed, Donnie, much like what happens inRocky, is given a title fight ostensibly as a marketing ploy based on his famous last name. Near the end of Donnie’s title fight, Rocky attempts to protect an injured Donnie by stopping the fight, something Rocky failed to do with Apollo inRocky IV. Like Rocky’s first title fight, Donnie loses via a split decision.
Apollo’s legacy is virtually omnipresent throughout theCreedseries. InCreed II, Donnie is challenged by Viktor, a vicious Russian contender who is the son of Ivan Drago. Donnie’s first fight with Viktor takes place in Las Vegas at the MGM Grand Casino, where Drago kills his father. The second fight occurs in Russia, where Rocky fights Drago inRocky IVas revenge for Apollo’s death.
Moreover, Apollo lives through Donnie, who has inherited much of his athletic ability and personality traits and is intent on continuing his legacy and reconciling his uncertain feelings toward a father whom Donnie never had the chance to meet.The originalRockyis streaming on Hulu, whileCreedis available on Philo.
