Michael B. Jordan says that Creed 2 should start filming within the next few months, adding that he intends to focus his energy next on making sure that it's a "solid project". Jordan is currently making the rounds promoting Marvel's Black Panther, which was directed by Creed helmsman Ryan Coogler and stars Jordan as the villain Erik Killmonger. Said character was widely praised for being the most compelling Marvel Cinematic Universe baddie to date in the first wave of Black Panther social media reactions, following the movie's red carpet premiere in Los Angeles.
Although Coogler and Jordan have plans to work together a fourth time (following Creed, Black Panther, and Fruitvale Station) on the true story inspired drama Wrong Answer, the former won't be calling the shots on the Creed sequel. That job was originally going to be handled by Sylvester Stallone (who will return yet again as Rocky Balboa in the film) but has since been reassigned to filmmaker Steven Caple Jr. instead. Production on the Creed sequel is slated to get underway very soon now, ahead of the movie's scheduled Fall 2018 release.
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Caple Jr., like Coogler, is coming to the Rocky/Creed franchise from an indie moviemaking background and has earned general acclaim for his feature length directorial debut (2016's The Land). When he spoke to Deadline ahead of the Black Panther premiere, Jordan said that he's "really excited" to work with Caple Jr. on the Creed sequel, adding that "Right now, we’re in the process of getting the script tight and making sure that it’s perfect."
While it was originally indicated that Stallone would be the sole screenwriter on Creed 2, it has since been revealed that Marvel's Luke Cage TV show creator Cheo Hodari Coker has been working on the script too. Jordan didn't clarify if Coker is still actively revising the screenplay or not during his interview with Deadline, nor did he mention a specific filming start date. He did, however, re-emphasize that his main concern right now is making sure that the Creed sequel is up to snuff:
Not exactly sure when we’re starting, but in the next few months we’ll get back to it and try to deliver a solid project in Creed 2.
Creed 2 is expected to be another raw and grounded sports drama in the vein of its predecessor, meaning it shouldn't require an extensive amount of time for filming and post-production. The main cast has already been assembled by this point too, including Tessa Thompson (reprising her role from the first Creed) and Florian ‘Big Nasty’ Munteanu as the film's main antagonist - Vitor Drago, the son of Rocky IV villain Ivan Drago (Dolph Lundgren). So long as principal photography begins within the next few months, like Jordan says it will, Creed 2 should thus have enough time to make its scheduled release date without sacrificing its quality of storytelling and craftsmanship somewhere along the way.
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More on Creed 2 as the story develops.
Source: Deadline
