Peter Farrelly is set to direct ‘I Play Rocky,’ a movie based on young Sylvester Stallone and the dramatic journey it took to get the 1976 boxing film ‘Rocky’ made, as confirmed by IndieWire.
The casting for the film is currently underway, with the script penned by Peter Gamble. Farrelly serves as producer alongside former Warner Bros. film chief Toby Emmerich and Christian Baha. The film will be presented to buyers at the upcoming Cannes Film Festival market, with CAA handling domestic distribution and FilmNation Entertainment managing international distribution.
‘I Play Rocky’ follows a struggling actor with a partially paralyzed face and a speech impediment who writes a script that a big movie studio wants to buy, but he refuses to sell it unless he gets to play the lead. Turning down an offer of life-changing money, he instead works for pennies to get the movie made with himself in the starring role.
Produced by Baha Productions, Fireside Films, and Eden Rock Media.
In a statement, Emmerich said, “I’ve been a fan of Peter Farrelly as both a filmmaker and a person since getting to work with him on the music for ‘Dumb and Dumber.’ But it was ‘Green Book’ that made me think of Pete for this inspiring screenplay.” Emmerich added, “Christian Baha and I feel blessed to have Pete at the helm for this movie. And like the unknown Stallone starring in ‘Rocky,’ Pete will be conducting a worldwide search to discover another actor who just needs one shot — in ‘I Play Rocky’ — to show the world what he can do.”
Baha said, “When I first read Peter Gamble’s energetic and poignant script, I knew it captured something very special.” Baha added, “The story of ‘I Play Rocky’ is as unique as Sylvester Stallone himself, a seeming Everyman with an undeniable gift who needs to share it with the world and refuses to take ‘no’ for an answer. And like the hero of our film, Baha Productions needed grit and determination as we fought for years to make this project into a reality. We are so fortunate to have teamed up with Toby Emmerich and Peter Farrelly, two legendary talents who not only share but enhance our vision of the film.”
Released in 1976, ‘Rocky’ was a massive success, winning three Academy Awards, including Best Picture. Stallone’s portrayal of Rocky Balboa garnered widespread acclaim, launching him as a major Hollywood star.
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