The transformation of the vintage Rocky franchise into the story of Adonis Creed (Michale B. Jordan) took two films and seven years, but the Creed series now fully belongs to Jordan, both in front of and behind the camera. The upcoming boxing drama Creed 3 marks Michael B. Jordan’s directorial debut, a daunting task for a talent to maintain the physical shape he has to stay in to play an elite boxer, deliver a noteworthy performance, while also putting out all of the fires that can pop up on a film set during production. From the looks of the first trailer for Creed 3, Jordan did a fine job surrounding himself with talent… including franchise newcomer Jonathan Majors, playing Adonis’s rival, and childhood friend. Watch the trailer above and see what’s in store.
Adonis Creed has been fighting for the better part of two films to escape from underneath the shadow of his father, Apollo Creed (Carl Weathers). In his first movie, Adonis had to decide whether he wanted to embrace his father’s legacy, and in the sequel, he faced the son of the man who killed Apollo, Ivan Drago (Dolph Lundgren). Now, free to be his own man, Adonis is being confronted by an individual who was integral to his childhood, but who went to jail for a crime Adonis might have participated in.
Jonathan Majors, best known for playing Kang the Conqueror in multiple upcoming Marvel movies, steps into the Creed 3 ring as Damian, a former friend who carries a grudge against Adonis. Damian, it seems, was a boxing prodigy. But he spent the bulk of his adult life in jail, watching Adonis earn the life that Damian believes he deserved. When Majors barks to Jordan that he’s coming for everything, we believe it, setting up a battle of wills that could tear both men and their families apart.
Michael B. Jordan really does look like he picked up visual techniques from talented directors that he has observed over the years. During an interview with CinemaBlend tied to the Creed 3 trailer launch, Jordan said:
I think meditating was really important for me. Just talking to a lot of directors that have been through this before really gave me as close of an idea as what the experiences were going to be, without going through it myself. So I leaned on those conversations and that advice. I just got finished working with Denzel (Washington) right before this project. So I had that wisdom and support that was there. So it really helped me out a lot during prep. So I think mentally, for me, just taking it a day at a time, but at the same time, always planning 10 steps ahead. Whatever you can do in the moment to feel better, you know what I'm saying? And help cope, and also prepare yourself for the day ahead and the weeks ahead. That's what you kind of did.
We will be able to see in a few months if it all paid off. At the very least, the physical training that Michael B. Jordan and Jonathan Majors put into preparing to play boxers worked extremely well, as these two look massive in early promotional materials. Majors says there’s narrative motivation for achieving this level of physique. If he says so. I think he just CAN look like that, so why not do it. In the meantime, Creed 3 is looking at a March 3, 2023 opening. Will you be checking this one out?
