Sylvester Stallone's role in Rocky made him a star, but his best performance as the "Italian Stallion" came much later. Stallone famously wrote the script for Rocky, which went on to win Best Picture after a hugely successful run at the box office. The underdog tale of amateur boxer Rocky Balboa reflects where Stallone's career was at the time. Both men seize their chance at success, defying the odds to become working-class heroes. Stallone's breakout role generated widespread acclaim, and he went on to play Rocky Balboa many more times throughout the decades-long Rocky franchise.

Stallone scored an Oscar nomination for his performance in Rocky, and his surly, world-weary boxer with a heart of gold became an instant film icon. Many of Stallone's best movies rely on pure, kinetic action, but Rocky should always serve as a reminder that Stallone can bring a lot of humanity to his characters too. While he's usually regarded as an action star rather than a serious dramatic actor, Rocky provides a good mixture of these two disparate elements. He shows the layers of pathos beneath the character's tough-guy exterior.

Sylvester Stallone Was At His Best In Creed

The Franchise Reboot Gave Stallone A Slightly New Role

The Rocky franchise seemed to have run its course, but Creed pushed it into a new era that recaptured the vitality of the original movie. With Michael B. Jordan as an ambitious young boxer with a personal connection to Rocky Balboa, Sylvester Stallone took on a ing role. Previous movies in the franchise had explored the idea of Rocky as an aging boxer, but Creed focused more on his efforts as a mentor to the next generation. This is what was needed to make the character just as compelling as he had originally been, and stallone responded with one of his finest performances.

He manages to make the script sing while still providing glimmers of the same old Rocky Balboa.

With his Oscar nomination for Creed, Stallone ed a very short list of actors who have received two nominations for playing the same character. Unlike Al Pacino in the first two Godfather movies or Bing Crosby in Going My Way and The Bells of St. Mary's, Stallone's two Oscar-nominated performances came decades apart. His character had changed so much over the years that Creed was asking something completely different of him, but he manages to make the script sing while still providing glimmers of the same old Rocky Balboa. His compelling on-screen dynamic with Jordan is the icing on the cake.

Stallone is the emotional lynchpin which holds Creed together. Ryan Coogler's movie has to balance the history of the franchise with a new story that has legs. Stallone is pivotal on both sides of this equation. Of course, he gives audiences a chance to see a new side to the character of Rocky Balboa, but his performance also highlights the emotional parallels which enhance Donnie's story. Rocky may be a mentor in Creed, but Stallone's performance underlines the character's own personal growth.

How Sylvester Stallone's Creed Performance Compares Against His Non-Rocky Movies

Creed Is A Contender For Stallone's Best Movie

Creed is an unusual Stallone movie in some ways. Although he's returning to a character that he had already played six times at that point, Creed requires a more refined performance than the typical Stallone fare. For context, the 2010s saw Stallone launching his Expendables franchise with three movies that all seek to recapture the explosive fun of '80s actioners. He also starred in several other throwback action movies. Creed is one of the few movies in this period of Stallone's career that stands out as a different kind of story, accepting his age rather than continually subverting and defying it.

Stallone's performance in Creed is undeniably powerful, but it works especially well with the added metatextual layer that audiences understand they are watching Stallone reckon with his place in the world. Just as the original Rocky was an allegory for Stallone's struggles in the movie industry at the time, Creed sees Stallone playing an aging star who wants to play his part and pave the way for a new generation. It's not certain that other dramatic roles would be as powerful for Stallone, but Creed provides ample evidence to suggest that he should try.