Sylvester Stallone Remembers Carl Weathers on ‘Fallon’

Sylvester Stallone shared one of his first memories of actor Carl Weathers, who starred in the iconic role as boxer Apollo Creed in the Rocky series.

While on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon in an episode aired Friday, Stallone, who co-starred in the franchise as Rocky Balboa, recalled the difficulty of finding someone who could play Creed. “I couldn’t fill that spot,” the actor told the host. “It required incredible athleticism, brains, spirit, talent, speed.” Weathers, a professional football player who played eight games with the then-Oakland Raiders in 1970 and 1971 before turning to acting, “had it all.”

“The first day he came in to read was actually at night and we were at wits’ end because we couldn’t find anyone,” continued Stallone, adding that Weathers was still playing football at the time and arrived in a bad mood. According to Stallone, during their read together Weathers joked, “If you can get me a real actor, I can perform.” After Weathers took a few shots at his head, his co-star said he was hired.

“I loved him. I couldn’t have done it without him,” said Stallone. “He’s magnificent.”

Weathers — who also featured in Predator, Happy Gilmore, and The Mandalorian, among other memorable roles — died at the age of 76 on Feb. 1, 2024. While he made his start in blaxploitation films and television crime dramas in the early Seventies, his breakout role would be Balboa’s rival-turned-close friend in the Rocky series from the 1976 Oscar-winning classic and continuing through 1979’s Rocky II, 1982’s Rocky III, and 1985’s Rocky IV.

Stallone previously paid tribute to their decades-long friendship following news of his death. “Today is an incredibly sad day for me. I’m so torn up, I can’t even tell you. I’m just trying to hold it in because Carl Weathers was such an integral part of my life, my success — everything about it. I give him incredible credit and kudos,” said the actor while standing in front of a painting portraying their characters in the ring. “Because when he walked into that room and I saw him for the first time, I saw greatness.”