Basement Audition Wins Actor Role in ‘I Play Rocky’ Biopic

Peter Farrelly’s I Play Rocky, premiering at the Toronto International Film Festival, portrays Sylvester Stallone’s determined struggle to bring the 1976 boxing drama to the screen and play its lead role. Anthony Ippolito, who plays the young Stallone, said conversations with the actor about his difficult childhood, facial paralysis and early career were overwhelming but helped him understand the real-life underdog behind Rocky Balboa. Ippolito pursued the role by filming improvised audition scenes with a heavy bag in his grandmother’s basement before receiving the script, a gamble that ultimately won over Farrelly and the casting team. The film has received strong applause and early awards-season buzz as it revisits the making of Rocky, which won three Oscars including Best Picture.