Sylvester Stallone has leveled himself above awards and critics’ opinions. The 76-year-old gained recognition with the American sports drama ‘Rocky’, released in 1976. The movie did more than expected. It broke all box office records.

via Imago

Raking $117 million, it became the highest-grossing movie of the year and got nominated for 10 Academy Awards in various categories.

Interestingly, it won three Oscars- One for each best picture, best director, and best editing.

But unfortunately, Stallone failed to win for himself. He was nominated for the best actor and was the favorite.

Besides the awards, he received a reward that made him a household name. Overnight, he gained enormous fame. He was no more a struggling actor wandering around the studios in Hollywood.

His depiction of ‘Rocky’ became a sensation. Fans liked the way he portrayed the story. An underdog going on to become the heavyweight champion of the world by dethroning the titlist Creed, who underestimated the former’s potential.

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According to Stallone, who wrote the script himself, the movie was mainly based on the real-life former heavyweight champion Rocky Marciano.

Since Marciano was retired and was not that big of a name outside the boxing crowd, Stallone made a few changes in his original script and took inspiration from another fight.

Which fight inspired Sylvester Stallone to write the ‘Rocky’ script?

Stallone took inspiration from Muhammad Ali vs Chuck Wepner fight that took place in 1975, as reported by ESPN.

The interesting thing about the fight was Chuck Wepner‘s game. He stepped inside the ring as a heavy underdog but fought his heart out.

He even became a fighter who knocked down Muhammad Ali. Though he lost the fight in the fifteenth round, he sent a spark that made headlines in top newspapers.

Taking inspiration from Wepner, he created the fictional champion, Rocky Balboa.

Since Stallone was not a big name in the industry, the director and producer of the movie offered him $2,56,000 to sell them the script. But Stallone insisted on playing the lead role himself.

His confidence changed the course of the movie’s success. The shooting for the movie was completed in 28 days with a limited budget but turned out to be one of the most spectacular classics of all time.

The music of the movie became iconic and would be found playing in gyms across the country. Following Rocky’s success, Stallone made six more installments of the franchise.