Stallone Will Return to Creed 4 Under One Condition, and It's Not Money-Related
Creed III, the overall ninth movie in the Rocky movie franchise, just hit the big screen.
While it might be too early to tell, how well this movie is going to perform, one thing about it is notable immediately – absence of Sylvester Stallone from the cast.
Stallone's Rocky Balboa previously appeared in every single project of the franchise, since its inception 47 years ago.
There were multiple reasons why Stallone decided to break this tradition. He did not agree with the path the movie was taking with Michael B. Jordan debuting as a movie director, towards a darker and edgier story.
But in addition to creative differences – and far more importantly – he remains mired in a long-lasting feud with the movie's producer Irwin Winkler over the franchise's rights – through some legal wizardry Winkler now owns the franchise and the character of Rocky Balboa.
For a long time Stallone has been vocal about his distaste for Winkler's ethics, characterizing him as "nefarious", and he obviously hated the idea of such a man dictating what he can or cannot do with Rocky.
So the changes under the new director must have been the last straw for him.
But these problems do not mean that Stallone absolutely rules out appearing in Creed IV. But he has a condition which is likely to make it improbable.
Stallone can bear with Michael B. Jordan's direction, but, as he said in an interview with SiriusXM, he's not going to collaborate with Winkler anymore:
"…Mike B. Jordan, a nice guy the studio is wonderful but it's just the, it's been such a real rough emotional ride that's all yeah. Now, if Michael B. Jordan will come up with a story, I'll do Creed 4 with him, as long as the other fellow is not involved."
As for money, Stallone said that he does not care about earning more (but after all, he already has a massive fortune, estimated to be around $400 million) – what he wants is to leave a proper legacy for his children, which is not possible with Winkler in charge.
But again, given that Winkler is currently holding the rights, he is likely to remain in charge, unless someone in Hollywood decides to buy the entire franchise, or manages to out-scheme him.