First released in 1976, there are many reasons why Rocky has remained a timeless film. It earned more than $117 million at the box office and became the highest-grossing movie of that year.
Rocky was nominated for 10 Academy Awards and won three, including Best Picture, making its writer and lead actor, Sylvester Stallone, a star.
But there’s more to Rocky than just being a successful franchise. Rocky Balboa is a protagonist, and perhaps his character is inspired by superheroes.
Superheroes showcase strength through actions and tackle problems head-on. Stallone’s Rocky emphasizes the physical aspect, perhaps drawn from how superheroes tell impactful stories visually, where actions speak louder than words.
Did Superheroes Inspire Sylvester Stallone’s Rocky Success?
At the age of 12, watching 1958’s Hercules with Steve Reeves transformed Sylvester Stallone‘s life. He was impressed by Hercules’ powerful, physical story. Continuing to share his experience, Stallone stated during a conversation at the Toronto Film Festival (via The Hollywood Reporter):
“I was very lucky, in the golden age of films, when dialogue was important. But the dialogue didn’t move me as much as the actual physical embodiment of overcoming odds.”
Despite lacking tangible skills, Rocky Balboa is a superhero. Though fallible, he’s a small-time crook with a good heart, chasing a dream. His relatability comes from being a nice guy who’s made some poor decisions.
Sly explained that comic books played a role in his action hero fantasies. He also shared his artistic aspirations, stating, “Coming to the rescue, not as a superhero, just as a regular guy forced to.”
Now, the question is: Was Rocky inspired by superheroes? It seems Stallone knows the answer better. The actor revealed that comics influenced his action hero ideas.
When discussing his artistic dreams, he stressed the idea of helping others—not as a superhero – but as an everyday person in tough situations. This shows how he created characters like Rocky, who, despite lacking superpowers, becomes a hero in his own way.
Why Sylvester Stallone Never Took on a Lead Comic Superhero Role?
Besides Rocky, Stallone gained fame in the 1980s and 90s for starring in blockbuster action films and franchises. One of Stallone’s notable roles was as John Rambo in First Blood, which kicked off the Rambo series.
In the early 2010s, he created and starred in The Expendables films, which achieved success at the box office despite receiving mixed critical reviews.
Although he later starred in Samaritan (a dark interpretation of the superhero genre), the actor has never played an actual superhero in his 50 years as an actor.
In another interview with THR, Stallone clarified why he never took on a major superhero role. He believes it depends on how well the parts would truly fit him. When discussing almost being cast in Richard Donner’s Superman, he shared:
“I don’t look like any comic-book character. Like I could have never played The Terminator. No one would make a robot with a crooked mouth and voice that sounds like a pallbearer. It just doesn’t work. But yes. Who was the guy Sam Jackson ended up playing? Yeah. I thought I could have done something like that, where I’m not the main guy.”
The 77-year-old seems into superhero stuff but feels he fits better as a side character, like Samuel L. Jackson‘s Nick Fury in Marvel. Lately, he’s been in comic movies as Starhawk in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017) and King Shark in The Suicide Squad (2021).
Even when he’s the superhero guy, it’s usually for not-so-famous movies like Judge Dredd in 1995 and Samaritan in 2022.
Watch Sylvester Stallone’s Rocky (1976) on Amazon’s Prime Video.
