{"id":13707,"date":"2018-11-16T16:56:10","date_gmt":"2018-11-16T21:56:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/idolchatter\/?p=13707"},"modified":"2018-11-16T16:56:10","modified_gmt":"2018-11-16T21:56:10","slug":"creed-vs-drago-rematch-creed-ii","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/idolchatter\/2018\/11\/creed-vs-drago-rematch-creed-ii.html","title":{"rendered":"Creed vs. Drago Rematch in \u201cCreed II\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"CREED<\/a>Rocky Balboa and Adonis Creed return to the big screen just in time for Thanksgiving in \u201cCreed II.\u201d The film is a direct sequel to the 2015 movie \u201cCreed\u201d and acts as the eighth instalment of the \u201cRocky\u201d series. It stars Michael B. Jordan and Sylvester Stallone who are reprising their roles as Adonis Creed and Rocky Balboa respectively. They are joined by Tessa Thompson, Dolph Lundgren, Florian Munteanu, Wood Harris, Russell Hornsby, Andre Ward and Phylicia Rashad. Ryan Coogler, the writer and director of the first \u201cCreed,\u201d is the executive producer for the film.<\/p>\n

The film follows Adonis Creed, the son of the deceased heavyweight boxing champion Apollo Creed, as he trains and prepares to try and defeat Viktor Drago. Viktor\u2019s father, Ivan Drago, was a U.S.S.R. champion boxer who secretly used steroids and advanced training to gain worldwide interest in his brute strength. He killed Apollo Creed in an exhibition boxing match and was later defeated by Rocky. Viktor has been trained to follow in his father\u2019s footsteps, and Ivan sees his son as a way to reclaim his honor. Adonis, meanwhile, sees defeating Viktor as a way to avenge his dead father. Adonis\u2019 choice to face down Viktor, however, creates tension between himself, his family and his mentor, Rocky.<\/p>\n

Several of the actors have spoken about the making of the film, and Michael B. Jordan commented about how excited he was with the opportunity to continue \u201cbuilding on the characters\u201d established in the first \u201cCreed.\u201d Jordan likened the first \u201cCreed\u201d to \u201can origin story\u201d for Adonis Creed that dealt with \u201ca fight within himself.\u201d The second \u201cCreed\u201d was a \u201cmore layered film,\u201d and bringing back \u201cthat animosity\u201d between Rocky and Ivan Drago only added to the intensity of the film, Jordon said.<\/p>\n

\u201cCreed II\u201d will be released on Wednesday, November 21, 2018. The official Facebook page<\/a> has a number of stills from the film as well as the two trailers. Check them out today, and then head over to see \u201cCreed II\u201d this week at a theater near you.<\/p>\n