Apollo Creed

Apollo Creed
Rocky character
Carl Weathers as Apollo Creed
First appearance	Rocky
Last appearance	Rocky IV
Portrayed by	Carl Weathers
Information
Nickname(s)	The Dancing Destroyer The King of Sting The Count of Monte Fisto The Prince of Punch The Master of Disaster The One and Only
Gender	Male
Occupation	Professional boxer (deceased)
Spouse(s)	Mary Anne Creed
Children	son; Adonis Johnson Creed Unnamed daughter Unnamed Son
Relatives	Tony "Duke" Evers (trainer, mentor) Rocky Balboa (adversary turned friend) Adrian Pennino-Balboa (friend) Paulie Pennino (friend) Adonis Creed (son)

Apollo Creed is a fictional character from the Rocky films, initially portrayed as the undisputed heavyweight champion of the world. He was played by Carl Weathers. He is a tough but agile African-American boxer. The character was inspired by the real-life champion Muhammad Ali, having what one author remarked as the same "brash, vocal, [and] theatrical" personality. Protagonist Rocky Balboa, Creed's rival in Rocky and Rocky II, faces underdog odds (five-to-one in Rocky II) and views Creed with respect, pointedly refusing the prodding of a reporter to "trash talk" against Creed by laconically remarking, "He's great."

In Rocky, Creed essentially cleans out his division of serious challengers and magnanimously decides to fight rookie contender, Balboa, for the fan spectacle. In the film and its sequel, Balboa and Creed find themselves basically evenly matched in the ring, ending up friends by the third movie. Creed had multiple nicknames, including most prominently "The Master of Disaster". Others include "The King of Sting", "The Dancing Destroyer", "The Prince of Punch", and "The Count of Monte Fisto". A 2013 poll of former heavyweight champions and boxing writers, including former WBA heavyweight star James "Bonecrusher" Smith, ranked Creed as the second-best boxer in the Rocky series. All of Creed's championship fights were scheduled for the 15-round distance. Championship fights did not convert from 15 rounds to 12 rounds until 1982 (WBC), and 1988 (WBA and IBF).

Apollo Creed first appeared in the 1976 Oscar-winning film Rocky as the charismatic, intelligent, and undefeated 33-year-old World Heavyweight Champion. A planned Bicentennial fight against number-one contender Mac Lee Green was scheduled for January 1, 1976, which Creed gladly hypes whenever someone places a microphone in front of him. However, Green hurts his left hand in training, and when none of the other top-ranked contenders, such as Joe Czak and Buddy Shaw, step up to face the champion, Creed responds with a promotion that will generate huge publicity. He will offer an unknown local fighter an opportunity to battle for the title in a match in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.