One of the biggest movies coming to theaters this fall is I Play Rocky, the highly anticipated Sylvester Stallone bio-pic that you and I both know is going to light up cinema screens to big numbers. Both Paul & I were lucky to see I Play Rocky which, as you will soon read, is one of the biggest highlights of this year’s Toronto International Film Festival!
About: There is no greater movie about beating the odds through sheer determination than Rocky. But the story behind that box-office smash — which turned its unknown writer-star Sylvester Stallone into a phenomenon — is just as unlikely and inspiring. Helmed by Oscar winner Peter Farrelly (TIFF ’18 People’s Choice Award winner Green Book) and featuring a career-making performance from Anthony Ippolito, I Play Rocky vividly recreates a paradigm-shifting moment in Hollywood history and chronicles the meteoric rise of one of cinema’s preeminent multihyphenates.
Sylvester (Ippolito) dreams of being an actor, but he grew up poor, shuttled from home to home, and at one point lived on the street. Now in his twenties, the closest he’s come to the big screen is acting in a porno and working as an usher. Then he sees Muhammad Ali fight Chuck Wepner, and inspiration hits: in a few fevered days, he writes a screenplay about an underdog boxer who goes the distance. Studio executives love it — but they balk at Sylvester’s stipulation that he play the hero. The production of this ambitious indie film will prove more arduous than anyone could have imagined.
Jason’s Reaction: KAPOW! A total knockout! I Play Rocky is one of 2026’s most enriching crowd-pleasers and for anyone who needs a little inspiration in their own lives. The story of Rocky on its own is one of the most rags-to-riches story for its lead Sylvester Stallone, who was working small jobs in New York while trying to land acting gigs and eventually starts writing scripts which lead to eventually getting his foot in the door in Hollywood. Filmmaker Peter Farrelly takes us back in time to that pivotal time in his career where Sly (played here by Anthony Ippolito) wants to get a movie made, but can only do it on his own terms.
If you love movies and especially the process of making them, you will find an absolute goldmine of goodies here I Play Rocky brilliantly does so many things right here; I always love movies about movies that show the process, and in I Play Rocky we not only get that in a beautifully entertaining and fun movie-in-a-movie depiction, but we also watch the process of Sly trying to figure everything out on his own terms. It isn’t easy, and the movie doesn’t give it to us easy either. In addition, the movie is wonderful in showing the connection to producers Robert Chartoff and Irwin Winkler and how they navigate their way through making an “indie” and dealing with a stubborn Stallone, who flat out refuses to let anyone else play the Rocky character along with dealing with studio executives who want a bigger name and to pay off Sly.
If you know your 1970s movies and know this story you may know the eventual turnout here but the process of Stallone writing, working out, the deep connection to his wonderful wife Sasha (AnnaSophia Robb, far from her childhood roles) and getting this movie made for UNDER 1 million dollars in the mid 1970s is so powerful, and even great viewing for aspiring filmmakers to show that if you have a story and something to say, it WILL get made. Throughout we are treated to the run-and-gun aspect of shooting Rocky on the fly and making things up as they go (there is one tear inducing sequence involving Sly making up a monologue on the spot that I didn’t know was the actual creation of a pivotal character) that is so enriching and made me fall in love with movies all over again. And the inner movie geek even smiled because they even took the time to include Garrett Brown, the inventor of the stedicam and created the legendary single take of Sly running up the stairs in Philadelphia. (His work here led to working his magic on The Shining and the famous hallway sequences.)
Peter Farelly, known in decades past as half of the Farelly Brothers for creating the likes of Dumb & Dumber and Kingpin, both of which are among my favourite comedies, sure knows how to make me laugh. But in recent film memory, Farelly has went on his own and graduated to more serious fare including TIFF 2018’s Green Book, which was my #1 movie of that year’s festival and went on to win the audience award and then the Best Picture Oscar. Here, he outdoes himself with an incredible eye for performance and detail, gets big laughs at unexpected moments and has also created a legendary lead performance by Anthony Ippolito, whose performance of Sly is a revelation and the best I have seen in 2026 and has an easy road ahead to Oscar consideation. How ironic, considering the successful Oscar win of Rocky and that we may see it all over again 50 years later. I Play Rocky is a winner.
Rating: 10 out of 10
Paul’s Reaction: A total crowd-pleasing retelling of how Sky Stallone turned Rocky into a surprise low-budget success story by insisting that he star in his own script, about a loser who believes in himself and takes a chance trying to become a champion boxer. Very funny and fast-paced script and an amazing Oscar-bound performance by Anthony Ippolito as Sylvester Stallone. Some critics have dismissed this as being overly sentimental, but that is the whole point. It’s like attacking a comedy because it’s funny. Just as audiences rooted for Rocky Balboa to beat the odds in the ring, audiences will cheer on Sly as he tries to beat the gate-keepers in Hollywood. A film about the little guy winning, against all odds.
Rating: 10 out of 10