“Creed III” celebrates free TV premiere
This is the situation in round 4 of the “Rocky” spin-off
In “Creed III”, Adonis “Donnie” Creed (Michael B. Jordan, left) has to deal with an old acquaintance who is not on good terms with him.
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The third part of the “Creed” series celebrates its free TV premiere. But what about another sequel to the “Rocky” spin-off?
The film, with which lead actor Michael B. Jordan (37) also made his debut as a director, knew how to stand on its own two feet – despite this low blow for many fans. On September 1st, “Creed III” celebrates its free TV premiere on ProSieben (8:15 p.m.) and immediately raises the question of what the situation is with a fourth part of the boxing drama.
A new, old acquaintance – that’s what “Creed III” is about
Adonis “Donnie” Creed (Jordan) had actually already hung up his boxing gloves. As the owner of his own boxing studio in Los Angeles, he teaches his knowledge to a new generation of promising talents. He spends the rest of his time with his wife Bianca (Tessa Thompson, 40) and his deaf daughter Amara, who is becoming increasingly interested in boxing herself.
But then Donnie is caught up in the past in the person of Damian “Dame” Anderson (Jonathan Majors, 34). The two were once inseparable like brothers, but then one fateful day caused a rift between them: Damian ended up in prison for years after a violent incident in 2002 in which Adonis was partly to blame, while his friend fled and got away with it. Accordingly, after his release from prison, Damian has a bone to pick with the boxing star who was able to live out his dream of becoming heavyweight champion in his place. It doesn’t take long before the two are facing each other in the ring with their fists raised.
Is part four coming?
Even without Sylvester Stallone, “Creed III” became a commercial hit. Consequently, it was no surprise when Hollywood producer Irwin Winkler (93) announced in November 2023that the “Rocky” spin-off will go into a fourth round. In the course of this, he also revealed that Michael B. Jordan will once again act as the lead actor and director.
Since then, there has been little news about the fourth “Creed” film, but this can certainly be explained by Winkler’s statements at the time. At the end of 2023, he announced that “Creed IV” would go into pre-production in around a year – from today’s perspective, in just under two to three months. According to consistent media reports, nothing has changed in this plan, even though no plot details have yet come to light. But this also makes it clear that a theatrical release is unlikely to be expected until early 2026 at the earliest.
Who is involved?
Fans are unlikely to hope for a return of Sylvester Stallone as Rocky Balboa. On the one hand, according to his own statement, his story came to a definitive end with the finale of “Creed II.” On the other hand, Stallone is not at all happy with Winkler, as he has repeatedly emphasized for decades. The star accuses the film producer of having first stolen the “Rocky” and then the “Creed” franchise from him. In short: Sly seems to be completely out of the running.
The situation is likely to be similar for Jonathan Majors, albeit for completely different reasons. The actor was found guilty of domestic violence at the end of last year. Although he did not have to serve a prison sentence, Hollywood nevertheless took immediate action: Majors lost several roles, including that of the new big villain in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). It is unlikely that they would take a risk and bring Majors back for a potential blockbuster like “Creed IV”. Especially since his character’s story seemed largely over.