In Creed, the Rocky universe takes an unusual turn as the movie does not focus on Rocky, but instead focuses on Adonis Johnson (Micheal B. Jordan), the apprentice of Rocky. Rocky plays a big role in Adonis’ life, as we see Rocky from more of an emotional level, rather than the boxer he portrayed in his earlier movies.

Creed, directed by Ryan Coogler is about the son of heavyweight champ Apollo Creed, who appeared in the original 1976 Rocky movie.  Coogler starts by using pieces from the original movies to instill a boxing theme, while also using more modern aspects to appeal more to today’s crowd.

Adonis Johnson spent a large amount of his childhood going in and out of group homes. His mother gave birth to him after the death of father, Apollo. He was a troubled kid that did not care about anything because he knew he had nothing valuable in his life. That was until a woman he’s never met, Mary Anne (Phylicia Rashad), came to adopt him. From that moment on, Adonis’ life was changed forever as he finally had someone to care for him like a mother should.

Soon after, Mary Anne turns out to be Apollo Creed’s widow, and it’s easy to see how much pain her husband’s unwillingness caused. Boxing is in Adonis’ blood despite the fact that he is now a responsible adult with a good job and a bright future ahead of him. He does not want to disappoint his mother who adopted him, but he can’t help but to sneak off to Tijuana get inside a boxing ring.

Adonis’ starts his career by trying to create his own name for his boxing career, instead of being known as Apollo Creed’s son. He ends up going to Philadelphia, where he finds his father’s old opponent, Rocky Balboa (Sylvester Stallone), eventually convincing the retired boxer to train him.

All in all Creed was a great movie. It is a perfect mixture between action and drama. Although Rocky is not the main character, audiences will still love seeing the Rocky they grew up watching as he takes on a different role.