Warning: SPOILERS for Rocky IV: Rocky Vs. Drago Director's Cut.
Sylvester Stallone's Rocky IV: Rocky vs. Drago director's cut finally makes it clear that Apollo Creed's (Carl Weathers) death was Rocky Balboa's (Sylvester Stallone) fault. With 35 years of hindsight, Stallone has re-edited Rocky IV by cutting scenes he was never happy with, tweaking several existing scenes, and adding never-before-seen footage. Rocky's creator accomplished his goal of reframing the theme of Rocky IV to focus on the brotherhood between Creed and Balboa, but Rocky now also squarely shoulders the blame for letting Apollo face Ivan Drago (Dolph Lundgren) in a fatal exhibition match.
Decades later, Sylvester Stallone now admits that he regrets killing off Apollo Creed in Rocky IV. Apollo was a popular and charismatic character who was unforgettably portrayed by Carl Weathers. The flashy and loquacious Creed was also a brilliant contrast to Rocky Balboa's grounded earnestness, and this became even clearer in Rocky III when Apollo decided to become Balboa's mentor and train "The Italian Stallion" for his rematch with Clubber Lang (Mr. T). Stallone understandably feels today that Apollo's character had much more to give the Rocky franchise had Creed survived his fight with Drago. Instead, Stallone used Apollo's death as the catalyst for Balboa to seek revenge against Drago, although Rocky IV's USA vs. Russia storyline eclipsed Rocky's quest to avenge Apollo at the end of the original 1985 classic.
In Rocky vs. Drago, the all-new scenes and additional dialogue Sylvester Stallone wove into his Rocky IV director's cut fault Rocky for essentially letting Apollo get himself killed. Stallone restored footage where Adrian Balboa (Talia Shire) tells Apollo that his reasons for wanting to fight Ivan Drago are wrong. Adrian, who Rocky knows "always tells the truth," reminds her husband, "All this won't happen if you don't back it." This hammers home that Balboa knew better but, out of friendship and loyalty, he let Apollo talk him into supporting his exhibition match against Drago anyway. Obviously, Drago is the one who kills Creed, but Rocky could have stopped it from happening every step of the way.
When Apollo tells Rocky not to stop the fight, Sylvester Stallone also inserted dialogue where Balboa responds, "Don't do this to me!" This means Rocky fully understood what was going to happen but he still abided by his best friend's wishes. Stallone's new Rocky IV edit has Balboa further hesitating to throw the towel, which he finally does too late as Apollo fell from Drago's final, fatal blow. Stallone then vividly expands Apollo's funeral scene so that Creed's mentor, Duke (Tony Burton), gives a stirring eulogy about Apollo living his life and meeting his end as "a warrior." This is followed by Rocky delivering a tearful goodbye to Apollo where he recognized Creed as a reason for the good things he gained in his life. Rocky clearly blames himself for Apollo's death as much as he does Drago, in spite of Adrian telling him it isn't his fault.
Sylvester Stallone's Rocky IV director's cut also makes a major change to Rocky's victory speech after he defeated Drago. In Rocky vs. Drago's revised post-fight interview, Balboa equated the Russian crowd that cheered him instead of Drago to Apollo being wrong that "people don't change." Rocky realized that if you don't change, you die, just like Apollo did, and thus, Rocky granted himself absolution for Creed's death. By recentering Rocky IV to be even more about Creed and Balboa, Rocky vs. Drago does deepen the film's theme that "everybody can change." But to get there, Rocky fully shoulders the blame for Apollo's death, and beating Ivan Drago in Sylvester Stallone's Rocky IV director's cut means both avenging Creed and Rocky forgiving himself.
