Stephan James cast as Carl Weathers in I Play Rocky

Actor Stephan James has been cast to portray the late Carl Weathers in I Play Rocky, an Amazon MGM Studios film about the making of the 1976 movie Rocky. The Peter Farrelly directed drama will feature Anthony Ippolito as a young Sylvester Stallone and recounts Stallone's effort to both write and star in the original film that went on to win the Academy Award for Best Picture.

I Play Rocky centers on the well-documented story of an unknown actor determined to play the part he had written. The screenplay is by Peter Gamble, and producers include Toby Emmerich and Christian Baha, with FilmNation Entertainment handling production services and international sales. The project is being developed for a theatrical release, and no distribution date has been announced.

James, whose credits include If Beale Street Could Talk, Race and the Prime Video series Homecoming, will portray Weathers, the former professional football player who became an actor and originated the role of Apollo Creed in Rocky. Weathers appeared opposite Stallone in the first four films in the franchise and died in February 2024. Anthony Ippolito, known for his roles in The Offer and Purple Hearts, has been cast as...