Carl Weathers is best known for playing boxer Apollo Creed but he has appeared in numerous other movies and TV shows. Weathers landed his first-ever role in the Clint Westwood film Magnum Force back in 1973 and he has gone on to appear in 56 other Hollywood productions to date.
Before pursuing a career in acting, Weathers was a professional football player in the NFL where he played for the Oakland Raiders. The actor currently stars in the critically-acclaimed seriesThe Mandalorian. Here are his best movies and TV shows, according to IMDb.
BEST MOVIE: Rocky II (7.3)
There is always too much pressure on a sequel to be successful if the first film was simply perfect. That was the case with Rocky II, the sequel to the landmark Rocky. It wasn’t really as good as the first, but it was entertaining nevertheless, paving the way for an entire franchise and later on, spin-off movies in Creed.
In Rocky II, Carl Weathers reprises his role as heavyweight champion Apollo Creed. After the split decision in the first film makes him retain his title, Apollo is unhappy that he didn’t get a clean win so he begins goading Rocky Balboa (Sylvester Stallone) for a rematch. Bad idea!
BEST TV SHOW: Psych (8.3)
In the comedy-drama Psych, a young man named Shawn Spencer is hired by the Santa Barbara Police Department after convincing everyone that he has the ability to solve crimes using psychic abilities. With the help of his best friend, he attempts to solve complicated cases that get thrown his way.
Carl Weather plays a police detective named Boone in Season 5. Boone and his partner Peters arrive to investigate the murder of the Chief Of Police. The two have no trust in Shawn and his psychic abilities and so they try to cut him out of the investigations.
BEST MOVIE: Close Encounters Of The Third Kind (7.6)
A year after starring alongside Sylvester Stallone in his breakout role, Weathers appeared in the highly successful Close Encounters Of The Third Kind. The movie was one of the many science thriller fiction films to be directed by Steven Spielberg, and is notably only his second major Hollywood movie following Jaws.
Close Encounters Of The Third Kind revolved around a blue-collar worker in Indiana named Roy Neary whose life completely changes when he encounters an unidentified flying object (UFO). Weathers only had a minor role in the film as a military officer but quick-eyed fans would spot him right away.
BEST TV SHOW: Regular Show (8.4)
Despite what the title says, this animated series was anything but regular. Regular Show focused on friends that worked as groundskeepers at a park. One was Mordecai, a blue jay while the other was a raccoon called Rigby. Every episode, they were tasked with solving a problem that eventually led them to a supernatural misadventure.
Carl Weathers voiced the minor character known as The God Of Basketball. He lived on the moon and moved around in a custom-made rocket-like Cadillac Escalade. The God Of Basketball befriended Mordecai and Rigby, eventually offering to teach them basketball skills.
BEST MOVIE: Predator (7.8)
This classic ’80s action film gave birth to a franchise as well as a couple of spin offs. In Predator, a paramilitary rescue team goes deep into the heart of guerrilla-territory in Central America to rescue American hostages. There they encounter an alien-like creature that begins to murder them one after the other.
Arnold Schwarzenegger played Major Dutch, the leader of the team while Weathers played Dillon, one of Dutch’s war friends and a current CIA operative. The dialogue between the two was also one of the best moments of the movie.
BEST TV SHOW: The Shield (8.7)
The Shield focused on the lives of a group of police officers working in a crime-infested area of Los Angels. A good number of the officers had no problem with breaking the rules and being dirty so long as it meant cleaning up the streets and safeguarding their own interests.
Carl Weathers played Joe Clark, a former LAPD officer who was sacked after attacking a young man who beat up his partner Vic. Weathers appeared in Season 2 and Season 6. In both instances, he was seeking help from his former partner Vic.
BEST MOVIE: Toy Story 4 (7.8)
Carl Weathers had a voice role as Combat Carl in the most recent continuations of Pixar’s celebrated Toy Story franchise. Combat Carl has a prominent role in the animated short Toy Story Of Terror! and a quick cameo in Toy Story 4.
In Toy Story Of Terror!, Carl is a GI Joe-styled action figure who was previously owned by a boy named Billy and he’s so eager to return to. He’s also in a constant state of paranoia. As for Toy Story 4, Combat Carl is seen with a bunch of other Carls. They’re all friends of Bo Peep’s and they provide her with useful information in her mission to protect the lost toys in the area.
BEST TV SHOW: Arrested Development (8.7)
Arrested Development can be proud of being one of the greatest sitcoms of all time. Throughout its run, it won six Emmys and a Golden Globe. The first three seasons aired on Fox but later on, the show was acquired by Netflix where the fourth and fifth season streamed.
The plot revolved around a responsible man named Michael Bluth who was forced to take over as the head of the family after his dad was jailed. However, the other irresponsible members kept giving him headaches. Carl Weathers played a parody of himself who was was hired to teach the character named Tobias how to act.
BEST MOVIE: Rocky (8.1)
This is the movie in which Carl Weathers got the role that would define his entire cinematic career as”That Guy From Rocky.” That’s probably what every fan called him in the ’70s and ’80s. After all, Weathers played the heavyweight boxing champion Apollo Creed in the very first Rocky movie and would return in some of the sequels.
Here, Rocky Balboa (Sylvester Stallone), an aspiring boxer who works as a debt collector for a loan shark gets the rare opportunity to fight the reigning heavyweight champion. He trains hard to prove himself and hopefully make good money.
BEST TV SHOW: The Mandalorian (8.7)
Star Wars spinoff The Mandalorian was one of 2019’s most discussed TV shows. It revolves around a bounty hunter named Djin Djarin (Pedro Pascal) who goes on a solo mission far away from the borders of the New Republic and ends up forming a bond with an alien baby named The Child.
Carl Weathers plays Greef Karga, the leader of a movement known as the Bounty Hunters’ Guild. He is the man who gives Djarin the bounty that eventually leads him to The Child. Greef alternates between being a friend and foe to Djarin in the first season.
