Character
This is a list of characters from the Rocky film series, consisting of Rocky (1976), Rocky II (1979), Rocky III (1982), Rocky IV (1985), Rocky V (1990), Rocky Balboa (2006), Creed…
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This is a list of characters from the Rocky film series, consisting of Rocky (1976), Rocky II (1979), Rocky III (1982), Rocky IV (1985), Rocky V (1990), Rocky Balboa (2006), Creed (2015), Creed II (2018) and Creed III (2023).
This is a list of characters from the Rocky film series, consisting of Rocky (1976), Rocky II (1979), Rocky III (1982), Rocky IV (1985), Rocky V (1990), Rocky Balboa (2006), Creed (2015), Creed II (2018) and Creed III (2023).
Robert "Rocky" Balboa (also known by his ring name The Italian Stallion, played by Sylvester Stallone), is the titular character and main protagonist of the Rocky film series. The character was created by Sylvester Stallone, who has also portrayed him in all eight films in the franchise. He is depicted as an everyman who started out by going the distance and overcoming obstacles that had occurred in his life and career as a professional boxer. In the Creed films, he trains Apollo Creed's illegitimate son Adonis to win the world heavyweight championship.
Adonis "Donnie" Johnson Creed, "Hollywood Donnie" (born Adonis Johnson, played by Michael B. Jordan), is the protagonist and titular character from the Rocky film series sequel, Creed. He is the son of world champion Apollo Creed, from an affair shortly before he died. Adonis is trained by Apollo's friend and former rival, fellow world champion Rocky Balboa. He went on to become a second generation world champion.
Adrianna "Adrian" Balboa (née Pennino, played by Talia Shire) is Rocky's girlfriend, and later wife. She is the mother of their only child Robert Balboa Jr. She appears in the original five Rocky movies. In Rocky Balboa, it is revealed that Adrian died of ovarian cancer in 2002, after 26 years of marriage, and four years before the events of that film. Much of the film's premise is Rocky's grieving over losing Adrian.
Paul "Paulie" Pennino is Adrian's older brother and Rocky's best friend, later becoming his brother-in-law when Rocky marries Adrian. He is one of only four characters to appear in the first six films (along with Rocky, Tony "Duke" Evers, and Stu Nahan). Young was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in the first film, along with co-star Burgess Meredith.
He works at a meat-rendering facility and is portrayed as having a drinking problem and tending towards self-pity, immaturity and emotional outbursts. Though he cares for his friends and family, he is often jealous of their happiness and success and feels they owe him. Paulie is seen to be racist; in Rocky III he openly stated that he did not like any of the black boxers in the gym where Apollo Creed once trained. He also says in Rocky Balboa that "Italian food cooked up by a bunch of Mexicans ain't so special."
Paulie introduced his sister, Adrian, to Rocky and encouraged their relationship. Paulie also invited Rocky to begin his unique training method of punching sides of beef at the rendering facility. After Rocky marries Adrian and struggles to make a life outside of boxing, he recommends Rocky for his former meat packing job; he also buys Rocky's car from him after the latter is laid off. He is disappointed later when he sees Rocky training amateurs in Mighty Mick's Gym; Paulie visits the pet shop where Adrian works and yells at her for refusing to let Rocky continue his boxing career; the stress of the argument causes her to go into premature labor, giving birth to Robert, Paulie's nephew. He later keeps Adrian company on the night of Rocky's rematch with Creed, where Rocky wins the world heavyweight championship.
Rocky, now heavyweight champion, wins a number of succeeding matches and becomes increasingly wealthy and famous. Paulie becomes jealous of Rocky's success, and is arrested after drunkenly destroying a pinball machine with Rocky's image. Rocky bails him out, but Paulie is still angry, claiming Rocky owes him. Paulie briefly attempts to fight Rocky, who easily evades him, and finally asks him for a job. Rocky agrees and hires him as a cornerman. After Rocky's loss to Clubber Lang and the death of Rocky's manager Mickey, Paulie accompanies Rocky and Adrian to Los Angeles, but complains about the flophouse they are staying in, which annoys Apollo. Paulie is again in Rocky's corner as Rocky wins the championship back from Lang.
After Apollo Creed is killed in the ring during an exhibition bout with Soviet boxer Ivan Drago, Paulie accompanies Rocky and Tony "Duke" Evers, Apollo's former trainer, to Siberia to help Rocky train for his match against Ivan Drago. As before in Los Angeles, Paulie gripes about the weather and the austere conditions of the cabin in which they will be staying. Prior to Rocky's match against Drago, Paulie tells Rocky of the admiration and love he has for him. Rocky defeats Drago to avenge Apollo's death.
Source: List of Rocky characters (CC BY-SA)
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Returning home to the U.S., Paulie and Adrian have a furious argument in Rocky's mansion: Paulie had unwittingly signed a power of attorney over to Rocky's accountant, who had squandered all of Rocky's money on poor real estate deals and also failed to pay Rocky's taxes over the past six years. Their mansion has been mortgaged for $400,000, and with Rocky forced into retirement due to brain damage, they must sell the mansion and most of their belongings. They move back to their old residence in the Kensington section of Philadelphia. When Rocky stops paying attention to Robert and shifts his focus to training a young boxer from Oklahoma named Tommy Gunn, Paulie steps in and begins training and spending more time with his nephew. Later, after Gunn leaves Rocky, he shows up at a bar to challenge Rocky to a fight. Paulie berates Tommy for his selfishness, and Tommy punches Paulie, leading Rocky to taking on, and beating Gunn, in a street fight.
Sixteen years later, Paulie is shown having resumed his meat-packing job. When Rocky agrees to an exhibition match against heavyweight champion Mason "The Line" Dixon, Paulie again becomes his cornerman. Initially sceptical of Rocky's desire to return to fighting, Paulie becomes fully supportive when he is laid off from the factory. He is also shown helping Rocky train and operate his restaurant, Adrian's (named after Adrian, who d
