CREED II (Steven Caple, Jr., 2018)

[Jox]

Neither at the moment it seems... The above French article is mistranslated though, they quoted Muntaneau's words as being Dolph's...

[dude hallenbeck]

This movie was tremendous. A very heavy story of failure and redemption. It's a Rocky 3/4 style story, however it's done in the more in depth dramatic way of the other films. Definitely a top 5 Dolph movie, probably up there for Stallone too.

The way the movie used wobbly handicam shots, and Dolph himself to subvert so many typical tropes of the Rocky saga, made the movie feel like it wasn't just a run of the mill sequel. Dolph was brilliantly ambiguous and very subtle here, you're never sure what he's thinking, certain events play out in the film and Drago reacts, but it could mean any number of things, it's done really well and pays off in an emotional way.

Stallone was great too, this feels like more of an epilogue to the character after his big showings in Rocky Balboa and Creed, the way this movie ends, I don't think we need to see more of Rocky himself again, so Sly made the right call if he is indeed done with the role.

[shooby]

I still can't imagine how the end is done : is there a winner and a loser? Will the father's desire of vengence fall, understanding that he is mistaken [...]
That's a shame : the release in France is not expected before the end of the world lol

[Jox]

In third, MGM's Creed II brought in an estimated $10.3 million for a domestic cume that now stands at $96.5 million. Internationally, the film added an estimated $5.2 million from 31 overseas markets, bringing the overseas running cume to $23.2m million. The film's top market remains the UK with $8.9 million.

https://www.boxofficemojo.com/news/?id=4464&p=.htm
https://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=creed2.htm

[Jox]

CREED II will be premiere in Paris on January 7th preceded by ROCKY IV at the biggest, most prestigious theatre, Le Grand Rex!

Ticket reservations:
http://bit.do/RockyCreed
https://www.facebook.com/events/199334184338419/

[Jox]

Chinese poster

[Jox]

‘Creed II’ Director Steven Caple Jr. On The Power Of Inclusivity Behind The Camera
https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/cr ... b082fd9d4a

[Jox]

Michael B. Jordan's 'Creed II' Tops $100 Million At The Domestic Box Office
https://www.forbes.com/sites/scottmende ... c142f8e7e4

With around $99.5 million in domestic earnings as of yesterday, today’s the day that MGM and Warner Bros.’ Creed II passes the $100m mark at the domestic box office. That comes off a gangbusters $56m Wed-Sun debut (compared to Creed’s $42m Thanksgiving bow three years ago). So, yes, the sequel has been more frontloaded, but not by much. Creed 2 has earned 1.77x its Wed-Sun debut by its 23rd day while Creed had earned 1.96x its Wed-Sun launch ($82.8m) by the end of day 23. And, yeah, it is a sequel even more so than Creed which sold itself as a “new” movie and a Rocky VII.

Nonetheless, it is Michael B. Jordan’s third $100 million+ grosser (alongside Creed and Black Panther) and Sylvester Stallone’s ninth (unadjusted) $100m earner, counting his cameo in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 ($389m). Adjusting for inflation, it is his 19th $100m+ earner and poor Expendables 2 is stuck at an adjusted gross of $99.8m ($85m in 2012). Creed II is now the fifth-biggest-grossing boxing drama since 1976 (between Million Dollar Baby’s $100m gross in 2004 and the original Creed’s $109m cume in 2015), so if it gets past Creed it’ll be in fourth place behind Rocky ($117m in 1976), Rocky III ($125m in 1982) and Rocky IV ($127m in 1985).

Yes, credit is due to director Steven Caple Jr. who proved, uh, capable, in taking the reins from Ryan Coogler and crafting a solid and entertaining sequel from a frankly lazy/absurd premise. Yes, going the route of bringing back Dolph Lundgren's Ivan Drago and pitting Adonis Creed against Victor Drago reeked of fanbait and/or a ten-second brainstorming session. But the filmmakers, including Stallone, viewed it not as a crutch but as an artistic challenge to overcome. By crafting a surprisingly good sequel (to a surprisingly great predecessor) from a mediocre premise, they earned another round of "Hey, this is better than I expected!" huzzahs and got to have their cake (Rocky IV nostalgia) and eat it too (playing to folks who wanted a Creed story).


At a glance, we’re probably looking at a domestic finish of between $115 million and $120m, which would put it just below the third and fourth Rocky movies. Keep in mind, back in the mid-80s, the Rocky series was bigger than James Bond and Star Wars was just wrapping up. Yes, there were bigger hits (Ghostbusters, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Beverly Hills Cop), but the Rocky franchise, especially those first four movies, had a consistency similar to the Mission: Impossible movies. At the very least, Creed II is going to be a somewhat rare sequel (especially outside of the MCU) that out-grosses its predecessor in North America.

Once it tops Creed ($109 million), it’ll be the seventh-biggest sports drama, sans inflation, behind Remember the Titans ($116m in 2000), Rocky ($117m in 1976), Seabiscuit ($120m in 2003), Rocky III ($125m in 1982), Rocky IV ($127m in 1985) and The Blind Side ($256m in 2009). It’ll actually open in much of the world after the new year, so we’ll see if it can also best the $63m overseas total for Creed. Either way, with a likely $175m+ global cume on a $50m budget, plus surprisingly good reviews to boot, Creed III is inevitable unless Michael B. Jordan walks away. And yes, he and Tessa Thompson will probably deserve big raises.

[Jox]

I haven't been able to see CREED II yet (and I will wait so that I can see AQUAMAN first since D shot long before), but it seems Florian Munteneau to have done great and has a shot at making something out of his opportunity. The good thing for his experience is that the script required him to work on his acting chops and emotions from a "real" character standpoint, and also that he had Dolph on his side to friendly mentor and inspire him. Florian just posted this nice piece:

Time to say THANK YOU to some very special people who joined me on this great and fun journey.
.
A big thank you goes out to the man I'm honored to carry his drago-legacy on, my on-screen dad @dolphlundgren . As a true legend for me, I didn't really know what to expect when I first met him. All I can say is that Dolph is one of the most humble and grounded people I have ever met. There was an instant chemistry between the two of us which helped a lot to create this strong father-son-bond. He initiated it right from the beginning to hang out as much as possible. Working out together, rehearsals, having dinner...to strengthen that bond. By the time we started shooting I already looked at him as my pops, knowing that I want and have to make him proud coz I'm carrying on his legacy. Just like in real life I do everything to make my father proud. Without his help, care and wisdom this all would have not been possible. And I think you can tell the strong relationship that we have in real life on screen. Big thx to a true legend, pops @dolphlundgren.

And thanking director Steven Caple Jr as well

Time to say THANK YOU to some very special people who joined me on this great and fun journey.
.
Most of the credits regarding my performance on #creed2 have to go to my brother and director @stevencaplejr. The time he spend with me prior shooting was unbelievable. In order to play a complex, dark and deep #drago character I told him my whole life story. Working day n night, it killed me in the beginning coz we were only focusing on the bad moments of my past in order to play those emotions. Later, I used it more and more as therapy and he was my therapist. I entrusted him basically everything and he respected and appreciated the shared moments. We created a strong bond and before every emotional take he took his time with me to go to those dark places and recapture those moments. He went with me through the pain and that pain you see on screen was real. Qualities of an outstanding director. I love you brother and can't thank you enough @stevencaplejr

[Jox]

MGM’s Creed II earned another $1.514 million (-46%) on its fourth Friday as it past the $100m domestic milestone. We can expect a $5.5m (-45%) weekend and $105m domestic cume. It’ll pass Creed ($109m in 2015) over the next week.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/scottmende ... 2d56f87519

[Jox]

Ivan Drago is the real hero of Creed 2 (potential spoilers)
This isn’t the boxing movie it thinks it is
https://www.polygon.com/2018/12/3/18124 ... h-lundgren

[Jox]

CREED II is has now grossed more than THE EXPENDABLES 1 ($103,068,524) in the US with $104,882,976.
https://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?p ... creed2.htm

[Jox]

The 50 Best Performances of 2018 (from Netflix to Broadway) To Binge Over Christmas Break
https://www.newsweek.com/newsweek-best- ... 18-1252747

Florian Munteanu, Creed II



If the sequel to Creed is less haymaker than conventional jab, it’s no fault of its star, Michael B. Jordan, who delivered his usual dazzle. But who was that other guy, the one playing Ivan Drago’s son? Didn’t he kind of steal his scenes? The character of Viktor, described as “born in hate,” had to be a badass, and the first-time actor knows his way around a ring; Munteanu is a former heavyweight boxer. Possibly his nickname, Big Nasty, helped with casting. “I got that when I was 12,” says Munteanu, “playing Ultimate Fighter on Xbox with friends. For some reason they picked that name for me.” For some reason. The kid was already boxing, inspired by, yes, the Rocky films. The hardest part of the film was losing weight. “Michael is naturally smaller, and we wanted to make our physiques look as equal as we could,” he says. “He was coming in at 190. To look super-shredded, I had to drop 25 pounds, to 225. I was hungry all the time.” As for Jordan’s skills, Munteanu was pleasantly surprised by the actor’s natural athleticism: “Boxing is a tough game. You cannot play-box—you actually get punched. I was worried about Michael being a pussy, but he’s a real man.”
—Janice Williams

[Jox]

[shooby]

Ivan Drago is the real hero of Creed 2 (potential spoilers)
This isn’t the boxing movie it thinks it is
https://www.polygon.com/2018/12/3/18124 ... h-lundgren

That's exactly what I wanted to hear. I feared that they just use the aura of Rocky 4 to bring the nostalgic but that it brings nothing to this Creed (see my last intervention here: "I still can't imagine how the end is done : is there a winner and a loser? Will the father's desire of vengence fall, understanding that he is mistaken [...]"), ultimately, this arc will be used more seriously