When Apollo Creed picked downtrodden boxer Rocky Balboa for a much-publicized fight, simply because he liked his nickname, The Italian Stallion, not many held much hope for the protagonist. However, Rocky surprised everyone, not least the heavyweight champion himself, by surviving 15 rounds with him in the ring and only losing the fight via split decision.
Similarly, Sylvester Stallone, who portrayed the lead character and wrote the screenplay of the sports drama Rocky, didn’t expect his movie to fare well at the box office after seeing the early reactions of viewers during its screening.
How Viewers Reacted to Sylvester Stallone’s Rocky During Its Screening
Sylvester Stallone is credited with re-defining the sports genre in Hollywood with his iconic franchise Rocky, which follows the life of a small-time Philadelphia boxer turned overnight sensation who deals with different bouts – in and out of the boxing ring.
However, before Rocky hit the theaters, Stallone wasn’t very bullish about the fate of his movie. In his Netflix documentary, Sly, the veteran actor revealed that back in 1976 reactions from a Rocky screening shattered his confidence. He recalled (via The Digital Fix):
“We screen Rocky five days before release. It was an afternoon matinee. Twenty minutes into it, the audience, ¾ were gone. And I’m getting lower in the seat. I’m going, ‘Oh, sh-t.’ So when it did open, my confidence was not soaring.”
Akin to how Rocky kept getting better as his fight against Creed went on, the movie also got a lot more engrossing as it progressed, and those who stayed were left impressed.
“When everyone’s inside, I go to the back, and I’m standing there. It’s almost like it’s a still painting,” Stallone added. “No one is moving, everyone is listening to every word. Like, boom. Riveted.”
Rocky went on to absolutely dominate the box office, making $225million. It was equally well received by the critics and ended up with three Academy Awards, including Best Picture in 1977.
Read more: Arnold Schwarzenegger Finally Bows Down To “Genius” Sylvester Stallone For One Reason Only
What Sylvester Stallone Did Before the Success of Rocky
Before Stallone picked up multiple awards and huge paychecks as the poster boy of the action genre in the 70s and 80s, he had to go through a fair share of struggle, which included working in an adult film to avoid a life of poverty and crime.
In 1970, then 24, he made his big screen debut in The Party at Kitty and Stud’s. Stallone worked two days for the softcore por–graphic movie and was paid $200.
“It was either do that movie or rob someone because I was at the end – at the very end – of my rope. Instead of doing something desperate, I worked two days for $200 and got myself out of the bus station,” he once said (via IMDb).
After Stallone rose to fame, the movie was edited and re-released as Italian Stallion.
