After returning to the franchise over 30 years after his debut, Dolph Lundgren offers details on the planned Drago spinoff movie of the Rocky franchise. Having starred as the iconic USSR villain Ivan Drago in Rocky IV, Lundgren would reprise his role in the 2018 legacy sequel Creed II, in which he was shown to be training his son Viktor to take down Michael B. Jordan’s Adonis Creed and become the new World Heavyweight Champion. While Munteanu would return for Creed III, Lundgren was absent, but it was revealed Drago was in development in late 2021.
During a recent interview with Screen Rant for his action-thriller Wanted Man, Lundgren was asked about his future in the Rocky franchise. The star confirmed development is still ongoing for Drago, sharing new details about the story of the spinoff and explaining that its delay stemmed from the success of Creed III, resulting in the studio wanting to push ahead with a sequel to it. Check out what Lundgren shared below:
Yeah, I think so. MGM was developing the script called Drago about my character and my son. I think what happened was the studio changed leadership, and then Creed III did very well, so they started preparing for Creed IV. This is last year, and then now there is a problem with a co-star in Creed IV. That storyline they had on the Drago script was interesting, it was kind of a coming to America, kind of immigration angle, with me and the son, and it was pretty cool.
It just so happened that, in Creed II, we’re in the Ukraine, in the beginning, we’re in Kyiv. That’s where the movie opens, even though it’s not really mentioned too much. But in the version of the script that I read, it starts with a Russian invasion, and in that, we go through some hard, difficult experiences that makes us want to come to America. It was kind of interesting.
Why The Drago Spinoff Should Still Happen
While Lundgren’s return as Drago in Creed II was initially seen as a touching nod to the franchise’s legacy and a way to bring Jordan’s character’s story full circle, it actually brought with it a lot more weight to make it more meaningful than nostalgia bait. By teaming Viktor with the supporters who abandoned his father after his loss to Rocky and revealing that his mother left his father after the event, it offered a little more nuance to both his past and present actions. It also allowed for a deeper connection between Viktor and Ivan when the group abandon him during the final fight.
Early reports of Drago indicated that not only would the spinoff expand on Ivan’s relationship with his son, but would even go on to explore the backstory of Lundgren’s character. With the actor now also revealing that the movie would be an immigration story for both Dragos as they strive to get out of Ukraine in the midst of the Russian invasion, the spinoff could very well be an appropriate depiction of the real-world event that sparked much discontent around the globe. Given Ivan’s story opened in the height of the Cold War and the USSR, there are a number of timely parallels the story could draw between the two.
Though Lundgren indicates that MGM is focused on developing Creed IV, his optimism for Drago moving forward does prove a promising sign that it will still move forward. While there was some speculation that the spinoff could set up a confrontation between Viktor and Jonathan Majors’ Dame in a revenge story, the latter actor’s recent legal troubles make it unlikely he will be back in the franchise in any capacity, particularly after being fired from the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Regardless of which direction the movie takes, the new details shared by Lundgren indicate that Drago has a lot of potential to match Creed‘s success.
