The ending fight with Apollo in the original Rocky gets a Rocky 3 twist in a stunning new piece of art. Released in 1976, the sports classic sees Sylvester Stallone starring as Rocky Balboa, a small-time boxer in Philadelphia who eventually finds himself training for a match against Carl Weathers' Apollo Creed, the heavyweight boxing world champion. The first film would become a major success, launching a franchise that now includes six main installments and three Creed spinoff movies.