The fierce grudge game is over. Adonis Creed, son of former heavyweight champion Apollo Creed, defeated Viktor Drago, son of Russian boxer Ivan Drago, who killed Apollo in the ring nearly 40 years ago. Rocky Balboa, who trained Creed for combat, looks at his fighter with pride and admiration and reaches out for a fist. As the retired “Italian Stallion” assures the descendants of his former rival in this climax to Creed II, the eighth installment in the venerable “Rocky” franchise, “It’s Your Time.”
Michael B. Jordan gets the sentiment.
Since his breakthrough ten years ago in the fact-based Fruitvale Station, in which he played a young Bay Area man who has a deadly encounter with transit police, his meteoric rise has paved the way for a gallery of award-winning performances in projects like Black Panther. , Without Remorse, Just Mercy and the Creed movies.
The phrase takes on a whole new meaning with Creed III, the latest chapter in the saga, charting the most important – and riskiest – venture of Jordan’s career: owning Stallone’s creation, the most successful sports franchise in film. story and adds themes of personal and cultural significance that other “Rocky” films lack.
In addition to reviving his muscular character, Jordan is also making his directorial debut. The setting has shifted from Philadelphia to Los Angeles, and the presentation is epic: the brutal battle sequences were filmed with Imax cameras to fulfill Jordan’s mission to put the viewer “in the thick of the action.” Creed’s nemesis is played this time by the red-hot Jonathan Majors, who gets carried away with his own “it’s your time” talk.
Not that the heightened expectations have hurt Jordan. Sitting in a Beverly Hills hotel suite a few days before the star-studded Hollywood premiere, he embodies the cool persona that exudes the aura of an artist confident in his ambition and leadership. Realizing he has some big gloves to fill, he takes charge without the regular presence of Stallone or his regular collaborator Ryan Coogler, director of Fruitvale Station, Black Panther and Creed.
But he made it clear he had no choice. He was driven to follow his artistic instincts to take the “Rocky” franchise in a new and more current direction, knowing that the challenges would be daunting.
“There’s nothing anyone could have said to me to prepare me for what I’ve been preparing myself for,” Jordan said, leaning forward on a couch. “People have tried and I have listened and there is still no comparison to my wildest challenges. But I have to pick up my momentum.”
Jordan’s impressive involvement with Creed III is a testament to how far he’s pushed the heartthrob label, having once claimed the crown of People magazine’s Sexiest Man Alive. In addition to acting, he was a producer on most of his projects, including Creed III, and his production company, Outlier Society, placed a strong emphasis on discovering and empowering diverse creators.
He knows his step into directing is being questioned: “As a person who’s always been compared to someone else, who’s been hunted down and dismembered to the point where I’ve been in front of the camera my entire career – well, I’m used to that But it’s never been on this scale, this level, and never before have I had this personal connection to what I do.
“But there’s a lot of pride and excitement in this opportunity to be seen in a way I’ve never seen before. That’s pretty awesome.”
Creed III picks up several years after the end of Creed II, with Creed retired and enjoying life with his musician wife, Bianca (Tessa Thompson), and their young daughter, Amara (Mila Davis-Kent). Their calm is shattered when Creed’s childhood friend and aspiring boxer Damian “Dame” Anderson (Majors) resurfaces after serving an 18-year sentence for a violent incident involving Creed.
Dame’s menacing agenda sends the former friends on a collision course, forcing Creed to retire and return to the ring for a brutal showdown.
Key to Jordan’s vision was thinking about the parallels between Creed’s life and his own: “My personal life and this character have been intertwined for nine years. It’s very strange to play a character who is going through the same things as I Yes, the franchise was a possibility. But it’s not “Rocky”. That’s “creed”. Your experiences will be completely different. You look different. I live in reality.”
While respecting the “Rocky” formula, Jordan wanted to combine gritty performances with more intimate explorations of black masculinity and its toxic potential, childhood traumas and the challenge – and power – of forgiveness.
“The only way to tell this story was to make it feel like an origin story, a sequel, and part of the trilogy all rolled into one,” said Jordan. “I have to fulfill the invisible contract I made with my audience for what they want from these Rocky Creed movies, but I also have to put my spin on it. We show what counts for Adonis as a black man living in America. “
And he’s not done yet. He’s already considering making a “creed” verse: “You’ll see more of the creed in different forms. Intellectual property is so rich. And I belong to the generation that has the hunger, the vision and the drive to make it happen.”
Stallone, co-writer of “Creed II” and credited as a producer on “Creed III”, was a vocal critic of “Rocky” producer Irwin Winkler, demanding “return of what’s left of my rights” on various social media platforms. media channels. Media reports last summer. In a subsequent interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Stallone called his absence from the film “an unfortunate situation”: “It went in a very different direction than I would have taken. It’s a different philosophy — that of Irwin Winkler and Michael B. Jordan I wish them well but I’m way more sentimental I like it when my heroes get beat up but I just don’t want them going into that dark room I just feel like people have enough darkness.
When asked about Stallone’s grievances, Jordan was diplomatic.
“There are a lot of things in this industry that have nothing to do with you,” he said. “This franchise started before I was born. Let’s start there. Then there’s the DNA of the world Sly built. The underdog spirit that has always been there.”
He paused, “We live in a different era. I have a following who loves Creed who He Is. Some of these people don’t even know who Rocky is. You’ve never seen the “Rocky” movies. But they saw “Creed.”
“My job is to focus on the work, the story, the character and all those things in the game and not take all those other things personally. There’s nothing but love and opportunity. If and when Stallone is here to share whether public or private, I will always be here with open arms and a warm smile, just as I always have.”
More important to Jordan than Stallone is his “Creed III” co-star Majors. The actor has already been praised for his work on The Last Black Man in San Francisco, The Harder They Fall and HBO’s Lovecraft Country. Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, and the Sundance competition title Magazine Dreams.
The mere mention of Majors fired Jordan: “I’m so proud of him. He’s a brother of mine. I know what he’s going through. I’ve had a three-picture year, and I know what that can do to you. I think It’s fun to navigate, help him where he wants. But he’s fine without me.”
He calmed down as he noticed similarities between Majors’ experiences and his own breakthrough at Fruitvale Station, as he and Coogler realized they made a strong team and wanted to continue working together.
“Part of me feels like I’m getting a second chance to do it with Johnathan because I didn’t have a chance to do it with Chad…” His voice trailed off at the thought of his Black Panther co-star Chadwick Boseman. who passed away from colon cancer in 2020. The death of Boseman, who quickly became one of Hollywood’s most popular actors, was a devastating blow to fans and those who worked with him on Black Panther, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, Da 5 Bloods and other projects.
Jordan was silent for several seconds as he stared into the distance. “I wanted to do more with him, you know. And I’m not letting that time go by…I’m excited about the opportunity to work with Jonathan again.”
Majors called Jordan “one of the last movie stars” in a separate interview. He’s a survivor. I have so much admiration for him. We are best friends. And he knows the Creed world better than anyone in the world.”
Thompson was also impressed with Jordan’s handover of his directing duties: “To be honest, it didn’t feel that different from before. He still felt very much like my teammate.”
She was also strengthened by Adonis and Bianca’s relationship, which grew into parenthood.
“We’ll both be the first to admit that we’ve both had ups and downs in our personal relationships trying to figure out what true love looks like,” Thompson said. “There’s something nice about going back to a couple that you can really count on over the course of nine years.”
Speaking of romantic ups and downs, Jordan enjoyed a high-profile breakup with model/influencer Lori Harvey, daughter of comedian Steve Harvey, last year. He joked about the breakup while hosting “Saturday Night Live” in January. A few weeks later, Harvey was photographed with her new boyfriend, “Snowfall” star Damson Idris.
When asked how he was living his personal life while also celebrating his Creed III milestone, a publicist suddenly appeared in the room and ordered that the focus of the interview remain on the film.
A moment later, Jordan said curtly, “It’s been dealt with.”
The mood brightened as Jordan discussed his post-Creed III plans.
“I need to recalibrate,” he said. “I put everything I had creatively into this work. I feel like I need to refill that bucket, travel a bit, see a few things, hang out with a few people. Live a little so that I have more to say.”
Source: LA Times