Creed 3 Replaced Rocky, Whether You Like It Or Not

Sylvester Stallone's Rocky Balboa is absent from Michael B. Jordan's Creed 3, but the movie found its perfect replacement whether fans like it or not.

Warning: This article contains spoilers for Creed 3.Not only was Creed 3 the first film in the Rocky franchise to not feature Sylvester Stallone as Rocky Balboa, it also replaced him. Set seven years after Creed 2, the third movie focuses on Michael B. Jordan's Adonis Creed and his life in Los Angeles, examining how the world heavyweight champ, now overseeing a new generation of fighters and building a life for his family, responds to a dark horse from his past disrupting everything he worked so hard for. Jonathan Majors' Damian Anderson, once Donnie's best friend, has tracked him down after eighteen years in prison with a chip on his shoulder and a score to settle.

Not only has Dame spent years resenting Donnie for abandoning him in his time of need, Donnie also holds himself personally responsible for his friend getting sent to jail over an altercation he started. After no hope for reconciliation, the Creed 3 final fight between Donnie and Dame is an explosive climax that leaves both men scarred, the result of confronting their emotions in the ring when words - rather than punches - could have done so much to repair their friendship. Dame loses the fight, but his arc, both now and in the future, resembles a familiar story audiences have seen before.

Creed 3's Diamond Dame Is The Franchise's New Rocky Balboa

Thanks to his underdog story, Diamond Dame has become the next Rocky. Creed 3 showed a hungry, scrappy fighter eager to prove himself by any means possible. From his early days fighting as a teen and living in a group home with Adonis, to fantasizing in a prison cell about the life he would have had if he had not tried to protect him all those years ago, Dame is a sympathetic character with a lot of untapped potential. Unlike most of the villains in the Rocky franchise, Dame is someone to root for.

Although where Rocky is during Creed 3 remains unknown, he has his own storyline to continue, focused on repairing relationships with his family and saving his neighborhood from being gentrified. Adonis already proved he could get through the challenge of facing Dame without Rocky, and is poised to become a mentor to future boxers the way Rocky was to him. It is Dame who has been given a redemption arc that can extend to future Creed sequels and spinoffs as a way to continue the best part of Rocky's legacy.

Dame's Redemption Arc In Creed Sequels Continues Rocky's Legacy

Unlike Ivan Drago, Clubber Lang, Tommy Gunn, or other adversaries Rocky faced, Dame received a great deal of character development. Even though he betrayed Donnie's trust long before he lost the World Heavyweight Championship, Dame has the chance to redeem himself in future Creed sequels. Dame never wanted to be a victim of circumstance, but the way he went about securing a title match lacked integrity, and Creed 3 sets up a Dame return by offering him the chance to earn his place in the ring the right way.

In Rocky, a neighborhood "pug" was never supposed to fight Apollo Creed, the technically more proficient boxer, but the Italian Stallion was fueled by the need to prove himself and eventually secured a match. Rocky knew that the two things he had going for him were his desire to win and his ability to take a ridiculous amount of punishment in the ring. Dame has that same fire and spirit in him, and watching Jonathan Majors' character transition from a villain to a hero might be even more exciting than Rocky's underdog trajectory.

Dame's Creed Future Makes Rocky's Return Less Likely

Based on the fact that Dame is the frontrunner to assume Rocky's mantle, hopes should perhaps be tempered for Stallone returning as Rocky in Creed 4. Future Creed movies will either focus on Dame's personal journey in the boxing world, possibly with Donnie in his corner, or on a future boxer like Donnie's daughter Amara. It would take something narratively meaningful for Rocky to reappear in the Creed franchise again, which Stallone has already publicly stated has taken a darker tone than the Rocky movies and, therefore, might not be suited for his style.

The Creed films have always strived for accuracy and authenticity with boxing, pushing the boundaries of what sports films can be. It seems appropriate that their athletes are not reduced to simple hero and villain archetypes. Those black-and-white dichotomies do not reflect reality, and Dame represents the best amalgamation of the Creed style and the principles and altruism of the Rocky franchise. If Rocky's story does not continue after Creed 3, at least his legacy is in good hands with Dame.

MORE: How Creed 3's Dame Sets Up Creed 4's Best Possible Fight