I Play Rocky Review – Stallone’s Heartbreaking True Story Is a Crowd-Pleasing Knockout That Nearly Matches Rocky

There’s a heartbreaking scene halfway through I Play Rocky where Sylvester Stallone has to sell his dog, Butkus, in order to pay the bills. It’s a hard one to watch, but it’s a moment we can probably all relate to. Months later, a writer’s check for Rocky finally arrives, and the very first thing he does with the money is buy Butkus back. He then writes the dog into the story (he’s a gift from Adrian to Rocky as he prepares for the fight against Apollo). The film could probably skip all those details, but it’s what makes I Play Rocky feel authentic and special. It’s exactly the sort of personal touch that gives the film its emotional weight and makes you cheer on Sly.

Yes, I Play Rocky, like the ’70s flick, is very much an inspirational story. Stallone is the underdog and Rocky is the underdog, and the parallels between the two are easy to spot. Both faced people who didn’t believe in them, and both had to fight for an opportunity that others seemed perfectly happy to deny them.

It’s been almost 50 years and, if we’re really honest, there’s nothing quite like Sylvester Stallone’s romantic sports-drama, Rocky (released in 1976). It’s stood the test of time. And the actor, now 80, has turned the film’s anniversary into a proper celebration, complete with a memoir (The Steps), Rocky in Concert and a theatrical 4K re-release (Rocky 50, November 7–11). But there’s no doubt about it; I Play Rocky is the biggest reason to cheer for the man who gave us one of cinema’s most beloved underdogs.

As it just so happens, the making of Rocky is just as inspiring as the film itself. Director Peter Farrelly, writer Peter Gamble and Anthony Ippolito, who plays a young Sly, have created something special with I Play Rocky (88% on Rotten Tomatoes), a biographical drama that follows Stallone’s humble beginnings and the struggles that eventually led him to write and star in the 1976 classic. It opens in select U.S. theaters on November 6 before expanding nationwide on November 20.

RELATED: “I Can Certainly Relate to His Plight”: Sylvester Stallone Was Down to Play an Older Batman

But the film is more than a retelling of the events. Although Sly’s journey into Hollywood was every bit as unlikely as his fictional boxer’s climb to the top, Farrelly could have made a standard biopic with a few training montages and a swelling score, but instead he’s made a love letter to the franchise, the actor, and filmmaking. And the same magic that made the original film a hit is present in this 2026 telling of his journey. In I Play Rocky, Sly bulldozes his way into Hollywood by refusing to sell his screenplay to studio executives offering life-changing money. They wanted the story, just not necessarily the writer/actor attached to it.

And again, you’ll relate to it completely. You’ll laugh, shed a tear and cheer as Stallone refuses to give up on his dream of playing the title character himself. Few people around him are telling him to hold out, but he does it anyway. It was a gamble that could have easily ended in disaster (it nearly did a bunch of times), but we already know how that particular fight turned out.

Masterfully played by Ippolito, the story pulls back the curtain on one of the most loved films of all time, and it does it in a way that makes you fall in love with the franchise all over again. He nails Stallone’s mannerisms and voice so well that you might wonder if Sly snuck onto set and did the scenes himself with some form of de-aging technology. His performance captures the actor’s physical presence so convincingly that you’ll forget that this isn’t a documentary.

If you’re a fan of the franchise, the film also reveals a few big surprises about how everything came together. The shoot turns out to be far from conventional, and a few of the details are big ones. For longtime fans, there’s plenty to enjoy in seeing how a scrappy production would go on to become a cultural phenomenon. Again, the parallels between the story on and off the page are hard to miss.

But beyond all the nostalgia stuff, in a time where Hollywood is turning its attention to AI and loud blockbusters, I Play Rocky is a reminder that smaller stories about the everyday man are important and that this form of filmmaking still needs to exist. Hollywood keeps chasing spectacle, but Farrelly’s film makes a convincing argument that heart, humor and a good story can still go the distance. You don’t need a superhero, a billion-dollar budget or an army of digital artists to make something worth watching.

It should inspire young filmmakers to pick up a pen and begin writing, or even pick up a camera and begin shooting. Stallone did it with no money, few connections and one dog he couldn’t afford to keep. Sometimes, all you need is a good screenplay and someone stubborn enough to refuse to give up on it.

In all honesty, this is the best film I’ve seen in 2026. It’s a reminder that you should reach for your dreams, no matter what the world tells you. Fifty years after Rocky first went the distance, Stallone’s own story still has plenty of punch. I Play Rocky is a unique achievement.

RELATED: The Most Inspirational Rocky Balboa Speech Continues To Inspire The World

I Play Rocky is playing in select U.S. theaters from November 6 and expands nationwide on November 20, 2026.