I Play Rocky
- Thread starter Doomsday
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dbair1967
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I wonder if Philly will raise a 2nd statue now
Doomsday
High Plains Drifter
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The studio did everything it could to sabotage and undermine Rocky. Extreme low budget, didn't secure location permission, almost zero promotion, and so on and so forth. Said the moviegoing public would never pay to see Stallone as a lead.
And initially they were right, it didn't do great the first week but then exploded via word of mouth mostly. Went on to win best picture that year. Art imitated life imitated art.
Stallone had a kernel of an idea in his head, to do a movie about his struggles. Didn't have a way to model it. Then he went to a Mohammed Ali fight vs. the Beyonne Bleeder Chuck Wepner. Vast underdog.
As he watched the fight, cheering for Wepner initially and especially after he'd knocked down Ali, Stallone began to see that the ring represented Stallone's own personal struggle to make it in Hollywood. Ali represented Studio execs and powers that be, beating him and all others that didn't fit the desired model, up. Chuck Wepner represents Stallone and all of those out there in the same type boat in all industries and business. And it all came together in his head.
Took three days to write it. It's a remarkable story.
