Stephan James is no stranger to playing a real-life person on screen. The award-winning actor put his best foot forward as Olympic running legend, Jesse Owens, in Race so he understands the importance of getting in shape for athletic roles. But to play the late, great Carl Weathers in I Play Rocky, the star tells M&F that he actually cut weight in order to look like his far larger hero.
Carl Weathers was in the NFL before his big break in the movies, but once the former Oakland Raider was cast as boxing champ Apollo Creed in the original Rocky, not to mention three successful sequels, it became clear that the star could blend his physicality as an athlete with the charisma required for the big screen.
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At 6’2’’ and topping the scales at around 220 muscular pounds, Weathers frame is a difficult one to replicate. “So, that was my first thought: I had to put on a lot of weight, gotta put on a lot of muscle,” says James. “I was just over 200 pounds when I found out that I was going to play him in this film. And, speaking to one of my trainers, I was telling him about this plan to just start packing on all this weight and trying to turn it into muscle. And, he was like, ‘You know what, Steph? If you just try to cut your bodyfat percentage down, then you may give yourself a better chance, giving the perspective of somebody who is even bigger than you may actually be.’”
The tactic was a savvy one. Competitive bodybuilders have long known that decreasing levels of body fat makes for a more muscular looking physique. As fat stores shrink, the skin appears tighter against the muscle, making the most of those angles, edges, and separations that create definition. And, as the waistline decreases, the upper body appears wider, making the shoulders, chest, and arms look wider.
Stephan James Cut 20 Pounds to Give the Illusion of a Bigger Apollo Creed
“I was able to cut down to about 180,” shares James, who continued to train for his fighting scenes while on a calorie deficit. “It really helped just emphasize and accentuate, you know, the muscles that I had. So, I was proud of what was the end result in the film.”
The Canadian actor says that he had just two months to get in shape to play Weathers, who passed away in 2024, and was hailed as Sylvester Stallone’s favorite onscreen opponent. James tells M&F that while he was previously “not big on cardio” before gaining the role, he soon understood that the iconic boxing battles between Creed and “The Italian Stallion” would force him to embrace the grind.
“I had to get very big on it during the process of making this film,” explains James, noting that mornings would consist of a cardio and weight training session, followed by learning the craft of boxing in the afternoons. “There was so much that I didn’t know and understand,” he recalls of stepping between the ropes. “From the footwork, to the technical, punches, then starting to learn the choreography. Cardio is the number one thing that you get from boxing. So, I think all of these things helped me cut the weight really fast, helping me to shred really, really, quickly.” The hard work certainly paid off, as Rocky fans have been quick to praise the casting of I Play Rocky, the story of how Sylvester Stallone defied the odds: writing and starring in one of the biggest movies of all time.
While Anthony Ippolito has Sly’s voice and body language down to a fine art, there’s more than a passing resemblance between Stephan James and Carl Weathers. The actor, who alongside brother Shamier Anderson, champions the representation of black talent with their nonprofit, The Black Academy, explains that he has a great deal of respect for the doors that Carl Weathers opened up for future generations. “Guys like Carl helped pave the way,” he tells M&F. “For so many other actors, like myself, to be able to be a leading man, to be seen as layered, characters with heart, thoughts, emotions, charisma and charm. Even his comedic beats. It’s not lost on me what Carl meant for that time, just being a pioneer.”
I Play Rocky hits theaters in the U.S. from Nov. 20.
