Anthony Ippolito signs with CAA ahead of I Play Rocky rollout
The actor playing young Sylvester Stallone in Amazon MGM’s I Play Rocky has landed at CAA before the film’s festival and theatrical run.
By Bianca Rossi · Entertainment Editor
2 min read
Anthony Ippolito, the actor stepping into Sylvester Stallone’s boots for I Play Rocky, has signed with CAA, Deadline reported Thursday.
The move comes as Amazon MGM Studios readies the drama for a high-profile run. According to Deadline, the film is set to begin its fall festival push at Toronto in September, before a limited theatrical release on November 13 and a wider release on November 20.
Ippolito plays the young Stallone in the film, which tells the story behind the making of Rocky. The movie follows Stallone as he tries to protect his script and secure the lead role of Rocky Balboa, the Philadelphia fighter who would become one of cinema’s best-known underdogs.
Deadline reported that the story includes Stallone’s financial struggles at the time, including selling his dog Butkus while he held firm on wanting to star in Rocky. The report said Stallone later convinced the dog’s new owner to sell Butkus back to him.
Rocky went on to win best picture, beating a heavyweight field that included All the President’s Men, Network, Taxi Driver and Bound for Glory.
A breakout role with a scrappy origin
I Play Rocky marks Ippolito’s first leading feature role, according to Deadline. His path to the part had a fitting underdog twist.
Deadline reported that Ippolito, who is based on Long Island, initially could not get into the mix with the young actors being considered to play Stallone. He made his own audition tape instead, which led director Peter Farrelly to meet with him and cast him in the role.
The signing follows a week in which Ippolito met with major agencies, Deadline said. The outlet also reported that attention around the actor and the Amazon MGM film had been building before the theatrical launch, with the trailer adding to interest this week.
Ippolito is already familiar to TV viewers from The Offer, the series about the making of The Godfather, where he played Al Pacino opposite Miles Teller. Deadline also cited his earlier work as George Wright in Netflix’s Grand Army and an appearance in Netflix’s Purple Hearts.
His screen career began with Pixels, where he played the younger version of Adam Sandler’s character, according to Deadline.
Alongside CAA, Ippolito is represented by Untitled, The Lede Company and Lichter, Grossman, Nichols, the report said.
This story draws on original reporting from Deadline.