Sylvester Stallone’s director’s cut of Rocky 4 gets an appropriate new title. The fourth installment in the original Rocky series famously took Stallone to Russia to do battle on behalf of American values (and his dead friend Apollo Creed) against hulking man-machine Ivan Drago (Dolph Lundgren). Rocky IV may have been cheesier than prior entries in the series, but it still went on to gross $300 million worldwide, the most of any Rocky movie.
Of course these days the legacy of Rocky is being carried on by the Creed franchise, with Michael B. Jordan playing the son of Rocky’s foe-turned-friend Apollo (Carl Weathers). Indeed, it’s been revealed that Creed III will move the new franchise even farther forward by not including Stallone as Rocky. But Stallone isn’t entirely done with the character of Rocky Balboa as he’s been working on a director’s cut of Rocky IV that he promises is “deeper and better” than the theatrical version released in 1985. Not much has been revealed about what changes Stallone is specifically making in his cut, but the star has said he is removing the movie’s infamous robot character Sico – a decision that upset the robot’s creator, who claims Stallone is only ditching Sico to avoid paying royalties.
In a recent Instagram post Stallone also revealed another change he’s made with his director’s cut. When the new version of Rocky IV comes out, Stallone says it won’t be called Rocky IV but will instead go by the title Rocky vs. Drago – The Ultimate Director’s Cut. Stallone’s post also includes a sneak peak of a BTS documentary made to chronicle the re-editing process. See the clip in the space below:
Fans disappointed to learn that Rocky won’t be back for Creed III should be excited to know they will still get to revisit Rocky IV with Stallone’s director’s cut, which he indeed indicates is the “ultimate” cut of the movie. Of course, Rocky and Drago did get to reunite on screen one last time in Creed II, which centered on Adonis’ match-up with Drago’s son Viktor (Florian Munteanu). As much fun as it was to see Stallone and Lundgren face off as Rocky and Drago one more time outside the ring, nothing compares to their original showdown in Rocky IV, which of course was a revenge match for Rocky after Drago killed Apollo Creed in the ring.
Stallone’s remarks about his Rocky IV director’s cut indicate that he’s put a lot of thought into re-editing the film in order to make it a more satisfying experience. Removing cheesy elements like Sico the robot will surely make the film feel a little less dated. However, it’s fair to ask how much can really be done to enrich Rocky IV. The premise of Rocky having to battle a terrifying Russian boxer, with all the political baggage that idea entails, is arguably inherent silly. Lundgren’s performance too was rather cartoonish and it’s a fair question how much can be done to make it seem less so. But Stallone seems to think he has greatly improved the movie, and fans are definitely excited to see this reworked Rocky 4.
Source: Sylvester Stallone/Instagram