With so much Super Bowl-related hullabaloo online, it’s easy to miss the first reactions to Creed III, the third film in the Rocky spinoff franchise starring Michael B. Jordan as Adonis Creed. The hard-hitting sequel serves as Jordan’s directorial debut, and critics and fans appear to be impressed by what they’ve witnessed. People reacting to Creed III praise the film’s intense boxing scenes filmed exclusively for the IMAX experience, Jonathan Majors’ stunning performance as Damian Anderson, and Jordan’s promising future as an up-and-coming director.
We’ve collected several early Creed III reactions below, doing our best to steer clear of spoilers.
Here’s the plot synopsis for Creed III:
After dominating the boxing world, Adonis Creed (Michael B. Jordan) thrived in his career and family. When a childhood friend and former boxing prodigy, Damian (Jonathan Majors), resurfaces after serving a long sentence in prison, he is eager to prove that he deserves his shot in the ring. The face-off between former friends is more than just a fight. To settle the score, Adonis must put his future on the line to battle Damian – a fighter with nothing to lose.
Michael B. Jordan directs Creed III from a story by Ryan Coogler, Keenan Coogler, and Zach Baylin. Keenan Coogler and Baylin wrote the screenplay. Creed III continues the story of Adonis Creed, the son of Apollo Creed, who trained under the legendary Rocky Balboa (Sylvester Stallone).
Joining Jordan, Tessa Thompson (Bianca Creed), and Mila Davis-Kent (Amara Creed) in Creed III are Jonathan Majors, Wood Harris, Florian Munteanu, and Phylicia Rashad. The threequel marks Jordan’s directorial debut.
Speaking with Deadline at Sundance, Majors said he took real punches from Jordan while filming Creed III. “I took a couple, I think. I loved it. I’m just so humbled by the opportunity to be a part of the Rocky franchise. Sly, Michael B. Jordan, it’s like, if I’m gonna be in that lineage, even as a baddie, I wanna go for it. So, yeah, [Michael] might caught me a few times. I took some body shots, and gave out a few, too.”
What do you think about the first reactions to Creed III? I am dying to see this movie in an IMAX theater. I’ve been a fan of the Rocky franchise for as long as I can recall, and I’m ready to get back in the ring. Let’s go!