First Runner-up: People’s Choice Award, 2026 Toronto International Film Festival

There is no greater movie about beating the odds through sheer determination than ROCKY. But the story behind that box-office smash—which turned its unknown writer-star Sylvester Stallone into a phenomenon—is just as unlikely and inspiring. Helmed by Oscar winner Peter Farrelly (GREEN BOOK) and featuring a career-making performance from Anthony Ippolito (The Offer), I PLAY ROCKY vividly recreates a paradigm-shifting moment in Hollywood history and chronicles the meteoric rise of one of cinema’s preeminent multihyphenates.

Sylvester (Ippolito) dreams of being an actor, but he grew up poor, shuttled from home to home, and at one point lived on the street. Now in his twenties, the closest he’s come to the big screen is acting in a porno and working as an usher. Then he sees Muhammad Ali fight Chuck Wepner, and inspiration hits: in a few fevered days, he writes a screenplay about an underdog boxer who goes the distance. Studio executives love it—but they balk at Sylvester’s stipulation that he play the hero. The production of this ambitious indie film will prove more arduous than anyone could have imagined.

In an uncanny echo of the legend he’s embodying, Ippolito is a revelation as the young Stallone: the stance, the cadences, that air of gravitas and diligence. He’s supported by a dream cast that includes Tracy Letts (LADY BIRD, Fall Focus 2017), Stephan James (IF BEALE STREET COULD TALK), and Oscar nominee Matt Dillon. I PLAY ROCKY soars with sweat and spirit. —Anita Lee, Toronto International Film Festival guide

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