Amazon MGM brought a teaser of “I Play Rocky,” a drama about the true story behind the tumultuous making of the 1976 boxing classic “Rocky.” Anthony Ippolito, best known for “The Offer,” portrays a young Sylvester Stallone, perfectly channeling his mumbly delivery, hunched over posture and lumbering sweetness. Seriously, it’s uncanny.
The movie takes place long before Stallone was known as an onscreen action hero. Back in the ’70s, he was a struggling actor with a partially paralyzed face and a speech impediment. He wrote the script to “Rocky” but refused to sell the rights unless he got to portray the lead character. “Rocky” revolves around a small-time boxer who gets the opportunity of a lifetime to take on the reigning world heavyweight champion, Apollo Creed (Carl Weathers). The logline for “I Play Rocky” describes Stallone’s “unshakable belief that he wasn’t just meant to write Rocky, he was meant to be Rocky Balboa.” Given its November release date, “I Play Rocky” looks like it’s being positioned as a possible awards contender.
Unfamiliar with the behind-the-scenes drama? The trailer that Amazon MGM shared shows Stallone struggling to break through as an actor and turning to screenwriting to create his own opportunities. He comes up with a killer story, but his insistence on portraying the title role leads him to turn down six-figure deals. Instead, he gets a chance to have the movie made for under $1 million, with the studio boss rooting for him to go behind schedule so he can have him yanked from the picture and replaced with an A-lister. Popular on Variety
“It’s a movie for anyone who’s ever been naive and crazy enough to make their dream a reality,” director Peter Farrelly said at CinemaCon while introducing the teaser.
Farrelly is best known for directing the Oscar-winning “Green Book.” Ippolito is starring alongside Stephan James as Weathers, as well as AnnaSophia Robb, Matt Dillon, P.J. Byrne, Tracy Letts and Jay Duplass.
Source: variety.com