The story behind “Rocky” is really well known. Not only is it the film that launched the acting career of Sylvester Stallone, but the actor is also responsible for writing and directing the film. Now, it appears Hollywood is ready to tell the story behind the creation of one of the greatest American films of all time.
According to Deadline, Peter Farrelly has signed on to direct “I Play Rocky,” a new film about the creation of the Sylvester Stallone classic. The film is written by Peter Gamble and produced by former WB executive, Toby Emmerich.
Here’s the synopsis:
A struggling actor with a partially paralyzed face and a speech impediment writes a script that a big movie studio wants to buy, but he refuses to sell it unless he gets to play the lead. Turning down an offer of life-changing money, he instead works for pennies to get the movie made with himself in the starring role. The movie becomes the biggest box office hit of 1976, notching 10 Oscar nominations and winning Best Picture. The true story of the making of the iconic movie Rocky.
Farrelly is one of the most beloved comedy directors of the last few decades, primarily with the work he did with his brother, Bobby. However, in recent years, he’s expanded a bit with films like “Green Book” and “The Greatest Beer Run Ever.”
“I’ve been a fan of Peter Farrelly as both a filmmaker and a person since getting to work with him on the music for ‘Dumb and Dumber,’” Emmerich said. “But it was ‘Green Book’ that made me think of Pete for this inspiring screenplay. Christian Baha and I feel blessed to have Pete at the helm for this movie. And like the unknown Stallone starring in ‘Rocky,’ Pete will be conducting a worldwide search to discover another actor who just needs one shot — in ‘I Play Rocky’ — to show the world what he can do.”
It’s still too soon to know when we might see “I Play Rocky” arrive in theaters or streaming. The film is going to take part in the Cannes film market, where it will hope to find a studio to collaborate with. Given Farrelly’s credentials and the story of “Rocky,” we have to assume studios will be lining up to buy the package.