Rocky (1976)
- The studio almost pulled funding for Rocky midway through the shoot, convinced that the audience wouldn't connect with the unconventional tone.
- During the filming of Rocky, the director famously rewrote the ending on the fly after seeing the chemistry between the lead actors.
Rocky is a 1976 American sports drama written by and starring Sylvester Stallone as Rocky Balboa, a small-time Philadelphia boxer and debt collector for a local loan shark who is given a once-in-a-lifetime shot at the world heavyweight championship when the champion Apollo Creed, played by Carl Weathers, selects him as a novelty opponent for a bicentennial exhibition bout. With the help of cantankerous trainer Mickey Goldmill, played by Burgess Meredith, and the quiet love of Adrian, a shy pet store clerk played by Talia Shire, Rocky trains for the fight of his life β not to win, but to prove he's not "just another bum from the neighborhood." Sylvester Stallone wrote the screenplay in three and a half days and refused to sell it unless he could star, despite being offered substantial sums from studios who wanted established actors. The decision transformed him from an unknown into one of the biggest movie stars in the world.
Rocky won three Academy Awards including Best Picture and Best Director for John G. Avildsen, defeating All the President's Men, Network, and Taxi Driver. Bill Conti's triumphant "Gonna Fly Now" training montage, culminating in Rocky's iconic run up the Philadelphia Museum of Art steps with arms raised, became one of the most recognizable and frequently referenced scenes in cinema history.
Rocky earned $225 million worldwide on a $1 million budget.
