Peter Farrelly to direct ‘I Play Rocky’

(Left) Peter Farrelly poses backstage with the Oscar® for Original Screenplay during the live ABC Television Broadcast of the 91st Annual Oscars® at the Dolby® Theater in Hollywood, CA on Sunday, February 24, 2019. Credit/ Supplier: Mike Baker / ©AMPAS Copyright: ©AMPAS (Right) Sylvester Stallone in ‘Rocky’. Photo: United Artists.

Advance:

Peter Farrelly is on board to direct ‘I Play Rocky’
It will follow Sylvester Stallone’s efforts to make the boxing classic.
Stallone himself is not involved in the film at this time.

Since he went from being known as one half of the comedy directing duo the Farrelly brothers to making more gritty, truth-based, Oscar-type films like ‘Green Book’ (which actually won the Oscar) and ‘The Greatest Beer Run’. Never’ (which, uh… he didn’t), Peter Farrelly has only ventured back into his old stomping grounds once with this year’s Prime Video comedy title ‘Ricky Stanicky’.

He’s returning to Earth for his next film and agrees to direct ‘I Play Rocky’, which will chronicle Sylvester Stallone’s struggles to convince someone to make his iconic boxing movie.

What is the story of ‘I Play Rocky’?

(From left to right) Sylvester Stallone and Carl Weathers in ‘Rocky’. Photo: United Artists.

A struggling actor with a partially paralyzed face and a speech impediment writes a script that a major movie studio wants to buy, but refuses to sell unless he lands the lead role.

Turning down a life-changing offer of money, he works for pennies to make the movie with himself in the lead role.

The film becomes the biggest box office success of 1976, earning 10 Oscar nominations and winning Best Picture. The true story of the making of the iconic movie ‘Rocky’.

‘Office Uprising’ writer Peter Gamble is working on the script, but there’s no indication yet whether Stallone himself will be involved.

‘I play Rocky’: The producers speak

Peter Farrelly poses with the Oscar® for Original Screenplay during the live ABC Television Broadcast of the 91st Annual Oscars® at the Dolby® Theater in Hollywood, CA on Sunday, February 24, 2019. Credit/Supplier: Valerie Durant / ©AMPAS Copyright: ©AMPAS

Toby Emmerich, former head of Warner Bros. Motion Picture, is one of the main producers and had this to say:

“I’ve been a fan of Peter Farrelly as a filmmaker and as a person since I started working with him on the music for Dumb and Dumber. But it was ‘Green Book’ that made me think of Pete for this inspiring script. Christian Baha and I feel blessed to have Pete at the helm of this film. And like the unknown Stallone who stars in ‘Rocky,’ Pete will conduct a global search to discover another actor who just needs one chance – in ‘I Play Rocky’ – to show the world what he can do.”

Fellow producer Christian Baha added this:

“When I first read Peter Gamble’s energetic and moving script, I knew it captured something very special. The story of ‘I Play Rocky’ is as unique as Sylvester Stallone himself, a seemingly everyman with an undeniable gift who needs to share it with the world and refuses to take “no” for an answer. And just like the hero of our film, Baha Productions needed courage and determination as we struggled for years to make this project a reality. “We are very fortunate to have partnered with Toby Emmerich and Peter Farrelly, two legendary talents who not only share but enhance our vision for the film.”