WARNING: SPOILERS ahead for Rocky and Creed.
The Rocky and Creed joint franchises span across five decades and collectively make up the greatest boxing movie franchise of all time. The franchise was spearheaded by Sylvester Stallone’s groundbreaking 1976 original film, which he wrote, starred in, and received two Academy Award nominations for Best Actor and Best Original Screenplay. The success of the original film inspired four sequels throughout the 1970s and 1980s, one 2006 reboot film, and an entirely new franchise, Creed, starring Michael B. Jordan.
The Rocky and Creed franchises have collectively made nearly $1.8 billion at the worldwide box office from 1976 to 2023. Multiple installments of the Rocky series have been directed by Stallone himself, including Rocky II, Rocky III, Rocky IV, and Rocky Balboa. Director Ryan Coogler (Blank Panther) launched the Creed franchise off to a great start, eventually handing the baton off to Michael B. Jordan to make his directorial debut in the recent Creed III. With Creed 4 confirmed, Jordan appears to be expanding his heralded franchise in a similar way as Stallone did with Rocky.
The Rocky & Creed Movies In Release Order
The Rocky and Creed franchises are conveniently able to be watched in chronological order according to their release year, making it very straightforward to get through the entire franchise for those who haven’t seen any of the films. Sylvester Stallone has appeared in every installment of the Rocky and Creed franchises except for the most recent film, Creed III, due to disagreements over its narrative direction. It’s unclear whether Stallone will return to the Rocky franchise in the future and if he will reprise his signature character in another official Rocky movie or potentially return in the expected Creed IV. The existing Rocky and Creed movies were released as follows:
- Rocky (1976)
- Rocky II (1979)
- Rocky III (1982)
- Rocky IV (1985)
- Rocky V (1990)
- Rocky Balboa (2006)
- Creed (2015)
- Creed II (2018)
- Creed III (2023)
The Rocky & Creed Movie In Chronological Order Of Events
Rocky (1976)
Box Office: $225 million | Runtime: 2 hours
Cast: Sylvester Stallone (Robert “Rocky” Balboa), Talia Shire (Adriana “Adrian” Pennino), Burt Young (Paulie Pennino), Carl Weathers (Apollo Creed), Burgess Meredith (Michael “Mickey” Goldmill), Thayer David (George “Miles” Jergens), Joe Spinell (Tony Gazzo), Tony Burton (Tony “Duke” Evers), Pedro Lovell (Spider Rico), Stan Shaw (“Big Dipper” Brown), Joe Frazier (Himself)
The film that started it all, Rocky is the very first installment of the celebrated boxing franchise that was released in 1976. Rocky is also the most critically acclaimed movie in the series, winning 3 Oscars and being nominated for a total of 10 at the 1977 Academy Awards. The film pits the massive underdog Rocky Balboa against world heavyweight champion Apollo Creed in a head-to-head battle that Rocky is nearly guaranteed to lose. Through sheer passion and grit, Rocky is able to come out on top and in doing so made the definitive sports movie about the heart of a champion.
Rocky II (1979)
Box Office: $200 million | Runtime: 1 hour, 59 minutes
Cast: Sylvester Stallone (Robert “Rocky” Balboa), Talia Shire (Adrian Balboa), Burt Young (Paulie Pennino), Carl Weathers (Apollo Creed), Burgess Meredith (Michael “Mickey” Goldmill), Tony Burton (Tony “Duke” Evers), Sylvia Meals (Mary Anne Creed), Seargeoh Stallone (Robert “Rocky” Balboa Jr.), Paul Micale (Father Carmine), Joe Spinell (Tony Gazzo)
Rocky II takes a deeper look at the personal life of Rocky Balboa outside the ring, chronicling a series of highs and lows after defeating Apollo Creed in the first movie. Creed challenges Rocky to a rematch to prove his critics wrong, wanting to beat Rocky once and for all. Rocky finds difficulties trying to find sustainable work at a local meat packing company and finds no other choice but to accept Creed’s challenge and face off once again in the ring. The celebrated sequel continued the rivalry between Rocky and Creed that would later birth the Creed franchise.
Rocky III (1982)
Box Office: $125 million | Runtime: 1 hour, 39 minutes
Cast: Sylvester Stallone (Robert “Rocky” Balboa), Talia Shire (Adrian Balboa), Burt Young (Paulie Pennino), Carl Weathers (Apollo Creed), Burgess Meredith (Michael “Mickey” Goldmill), Tony Burton (Tony “Duke” Evers), Mr. T (James “Clubber” Lang), Ina Fried (Robert “Rocky” Balboa Jr.), Hulk Hogan (Thunderlips)
Rocky III features two real-life figures from the world of competitive fighting, Mr. T and Hulk Hogan. Stallone returns as the titular character who has become more famous than ever, which attracts the formidable fighter Clubber Lang (Mr. T). Rocky faces new adversities in Rocky III with the death of his cherished trainer Mickey which was partially the fault of Clubber Lang. Creed returns as an ally and trainer to help Rocky take down Lang and avenge Mickey in the third Rocky film.
Rocky IV (1985)
Box Office: $300 million | Runtime: 1 hour, 31 minutes
Cast: Sylvester Stallone (Robert “Rocky” Balboa), Talia Shire (Adrian Balboa), Burt Young (Paulie Pennino), Carl Weathers (Apollo Creed), Brigitte Nielsen (Ludmilla Vobet Drago), Dolph Lundgren (Ivan Drago), Tony Burton (Tony “Duke” Evers), Michael Pataki (Nicolai Koloff), Rocky Krakoff (Rocky Balboa Jr.), David Lloyd Austin (Mikhail Gorbachev)
Rocky IV introduces another iconic character of the franchise, Ivan Drago, who infamously kills Apollo Creed in the ring. It is later discovered that Drago had been illegally using steroids, which is why he was so machine-like and nearly impossible to beat. Rocky faces his most difficult challenge yet in Rocky IV, having to deal with the guilt of Creed’s death because he felt responsible for not preparing him enough. Rocky seeks out the help of Creed’s former manager Duke and takes on Drago in the U.S.S.R. to avenge Creed.
Rocky V (1990)
Box Office: $120 million | Runtime: 1 hour, 44 minutes
Cast: Sylvester Stallone (Robert “Rocky” Balboa), Talia Shire (Adrian Balboa), Burt Young (Paulie Pennino), Sage Stallone (Robert “Rocky” Balboa Jr.), Tommy Morrison (Tommy “The Machine” Gunn), Burgess Meredith (Mickey Goldmill), Richard Gant (George Washington Duke), Tony Burton (Tony “Duke” Evers), Michael Williams (Union Cane)
Rocky V finds Rocky Balboa out of the ring and retired from professional fighting after his fight with Ivan Drago left him permanently injured. He becomes the head of Mickey’s boxing gym and starts to train an up-and-coming fighter named Tommy Gunn. He eventually becomes Gunn’s manager, who becomes successful and starts to attract the interest of powerful and more resourceful managers. After Tommy betrays Rocky, the historic fighter realizes that he may have no other choice but to leave it all in the ring.
Rocky Balboa (2006)
Box Office: $156 million | Runtime: 1 hour, 42 minutes
Cast: Sylvester Stallone (Robert “Rocky” Balboa), Burt Young (Paulie Pennino), Antonio Tarver (Mason “The Line” Dixon), Milo Ventimiglia (Robert Balboa, Jr.), Geraldine Hughes (Marie), James Francis Kelly III (Stephenson aka “Steps”), Tony Burton (Tony “Duke” Evers), Pedro Lovell (Spider Rico), Jacob “Stitch” Duran (Himself)
Rocky Balboa rebooted the Rocky franchise in 2006 thirty years after the original film premiered. The film sees Rocky back in the ring when Sylvester Stallone was 59 years old. The film follows the celebrated box working at a Philadelphia restaurant called Adrian’s which he named after his late wife. Rocky finds new inspiration to fight after seeing a virtual mockup of him in his prime against Mason Dixon. Dixon’s managers catch wind of Rocky’s return to the sport and set up a match for a publicity stunt that results in Rocky’s final go in the ring.
Creed (2015)
Box Office: $173.5 million | Runtime: 2 hours, 13 minutes
Cast: Michael B. Jordan (Adonis “Donnie” Creed), Alex Henderson (Young Donnie), Sylvester Stallone (Robert “Rocky” Balboa), Tessa Thompson (Bianca), Phylicia Rashad (Mary Anne Creed), Tony Bellew (“Pretty” Ricky Conlan), Graham McTavish (Tommy Holiday), Wood Harris (Tony “Little Duke” Evers), Ritchie Coster (Pete Sporino), Brian Anthony Wilson (James)
Creed is arguably the second-best film in the Rocky franchise after the original 1976 movie. Stallone received his first Academy Award nomination since the first Rocky movie for Best Supporting Actor in the Ryan Cooger film, which introduced Michael B. Jordan as the son of Apollo Creed. With the help of Balboa, Adonis “Donnie” Johnson wants to follow in his father’s footsteps and adopts Creed’s last name in an effort to also become a world boxing champion.
Creed II (2018)
Box Office: $213.5 million | Runtime: 2 hours, 10 minutes
Cast: Michael B. Jordan (Adonis “Donnie” Creed), Sylvester Stallone (Robert “Rocky” Balboa), Tessa Thompson (Bianca Taylor), Phylicia Rashad (Mary Anne Creed), Dolph Lundgren (Ivan Drago), Florian Munteanu (Viktor Drago), Wood Harris (Tony “Little Duke” Evers), Russell Hornsby (Buddy Marcelle), Milo Ventimiglia (Rocky Balboa Jr.), Andre Ward (Danny “Stuntman” Wheeler), Brigitte Nielsen (Ludmilla Vobet Drago)
After becoming the heavyweight champion like his father did, Adonis Creed agrees to face off against the son of the man who killed his father, Viktor Drago. Ivan Drago returns to the franchise for the first time since Rocky IV in Creed II, creating a highly anticipated matchup between the two sons. Rocky returns in the film as well, encouraging Adonis not to accept the fight, which Creed does anyway. The film takes a deeper dive into the perspective of the Drago family and continues the Rocky franchise in innovative ways.
Creed III (2023)
Box Office: $274.5 million | Runtime: 1 hour, 56 minutes
Cast: Michael B. Jordan (Adonis “Donnie” Creed), Thaddeus J. Mixon (Young Donnie), Tessa Thompson (Bianca Taylor-Creed), Jonathan Majors (Damian “Diamond Dame” Anderson), Spence Moore II (Young Damian), Wood Harris (Tony “Little Duke” Evers), Mila Davis-Kent (Amara Creed), Florian Munteanu (Viktor Drago), Phylicia Rashad (Mary Anne Creed), José Benavidez Jr. (Felix Chavez), Selenis Leyva (Laura Chavez), Anthony Bellew (“Pretty” Ricky Conlan)
Creed III is the first and only movie of the Rocky franchise without the direct participation of Sylvester Stallone. Creed faces off against a childhood friend after becoming the undisputed champion of the boxing world, threatening both his professional and family lives. Creed’s old friend Damian was also a boxing prodigy before serving time in prison. Finally a free man, he takes on Creed in a brutal showdown that is one of the most personal confrontations in the Rocky franchise.
