Anthony Ippolito appears as a young Sylvester Stallone in a first-look image from I, Play Rocky, the Peter Farrelly film dramatizing how Stallone wrote and fought to star in Rocky before the 1976 boxing drama became a phenomenon. The still, released by the studio, shows Ippolito styled in Stallone’s early-70s look, signaling a focus on the pre-fame years that led to the Oscar-winning movie and a long-running franchise.
Production is underway, with Amazon MGM Studios backing the project and Farrelly directing from a script by Peter Gamble. Recent casting rounds out the behind-the-scenes ensemble: Stephan James is set as Carl Weathers, AnnaSophia Robb portrays Stallone’s then-partner and future wife Sasha Czack, and Matt Dillon plays Stallone’s father, Frank Stallone Sr. Industry notices have also pointed to P.J. Byrne as producer Irwin Winkler, Toby Kebbell as producer Robert Chartoff, and Jay Duplass as director John G. Avildsen.
Production is underway for I PLAY ROCKY, starring Anthony Ippolito. The film tells the true story of Sylvester Stallone and his unshakable belief that he wasn’t just meant to write Rocky, he was meant to be Rocky Balboa. pic.twitter.com/hDY0I1jlGS
— Amazon MGM Studios (@AmazonMGMStudio) October 20, 2025
Stallone signaled public support for the production over the weekend, posting an Instagram message noting the movie had started filming and wishing the team “Good luck… keep punching.” The post follows earlier remarks in September that he had not been consulted on the project at the time and learned of it from reports, while saying he was open to helping. The social-media nod suggests a warming stance as cameras roll.
Ippolito previously stepped into another screen icon’s shoes as a young Al Pacino in The Offer, experience that may prove useful in capturing Stallone at a vulnerable career moment. Farrelly’s film is framed as a real-world underdog story about authorship and persistence inside the studio system, tracing how a script by a largely unknown actor became a cornerstone of American pop cinema. A release date has not yet been announced, but the studio has indicated a theatrical rollout.
