Inside the 'I Play Rocky' Philadelphia premiere

Fox - Fox 29
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Nov 3, 2026
The red carpet rolled out for the I Play Rocky premiere in Center City.
The movie stars Anthony Ippolito as Stallone,
also Anna-Sophia Robb and Matt Dillon,
legendary director Peter Farrelly at the helm.
Our Brittany Weir has more from the red carpet.
Rocky Balboa is more than a movie character here in Philadelphia.
He is part of the city's identity.
And now a new movie is bringing that underdog story back to life.
We're here on the red carpet at the Philadelphia Film Society
for the premiere of I Play Rocky,
Rocky.
celebrating Sylvester Stallone
and what went into making an iconic movie.
You wrote this in three and a half days.
Yeah.
This is freaking good.
That script would eventually become one
of the most successful movies in Hollywood history.
What do you think about...
But before Rocky Balboa became a household name,
Sylvester Stallone was a struggling actor with a dream.
The story of making this movie is as strong as the Rocky story.
It is the same story, except Stallone's a real person,
and I wanted people to see that.
That fight to get the movie made is the story behind I Play Rocky.
Director Peter Farrelly says Stallone
didn't just want to sell his script,
he wanted to star in it, but he wasn't about to give up that chance.
Anthony Ippolito takes
on the leading role playing
Sylvester Stallone himself.
He put on about 40 pounds of muscle for the part.
And then there's like a physical element and trying to prepare
in that way because, you know, he had a very specific physique.
The film also shines a light on the people
who helped Stallone chase that dream,
including his first wife, Sasha, played by Anna-Sophia Robb.
Write a script.
Give yourself the best part.
Every public-facing person has somebody who's more in the shadows,
who's holding their hand and encouraging them along their journey.
And for Scott Teller, who plays Burt Young,
Rocky's underdog story is personal.
He grew up in the Philadelphia area.
Rocky's meant so much to me.
Growing up, everything I've accomplished in life,
the music, the story, being the underdog,
I mean, we can all...
Relate to the movie. You know, we're all underdogs.
And if you want to go see this movie,
it premieres in theaters on November 20th in Philadelphia.
Brittany Weir, Fox 29 news.
