Creed III looks set to deliver a knockout box office result when it lands in over 4,000 theaters on Friday. According to industry estimates, the threequel is expected to gross between $36 million and $40 million, besting the previous two entries in the franchise spun off from the iconic Rocky film series.
Creed and Creed II debuted, respectively, with $29.6 million and $35.5 million and grossed a combined $387.7 million at the box office.
Creed III sees Michael B. Jordan return as a titular Adonis "Donnie" Creed. However, things get serious when a childhood friend and now ex-con turns up out of the blue with his eyes on Creed's crown. That friend is Jonathan Majors' Damian "Dame" Anderson.
Ahead of its release, the cast and crew, including lead actor and first-time director Jordan, Majors, Tessa Thompson, and producer Ryan Coogler gathered at a press conference in Los Angeles to discuss the movie.
Jordan prepared for his first time in the director's chair speaking with Coogler, Jon Favreau, Bradley Cooper and Denzel Washington, but it was Coogler who first planted the seed in Jordan's head.
"Ryan told me that I could direct. I was in awe of what he was doing, seeing a black man my age, somebody I was getting to know at that time making Fruitvale Station, commanding a set and seeing what was possible," Jordan recalled. "Him telling me, like, 'Mike, you can do this too,' was when that first seed got planted in my head. We did Creed, and Creed II came along when Steven Caple Jr. jumped into the director's chair, and the third one seemed like the perfect time. I talked to some people I respect the opinions of, and Ryan was one of them."
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The actor-director added, "Preparing to shoot this movie, Ryan had a lot of thoughts, and he was a great sounding board for me, so Jon, Bradley, and Denzel. Those are some people that I tapped into to get their opinions."
What Tessa Thompson, who plays Creed's wife Bianca, found "fascinating" and particularly powerful was how she and Jordan's personal growth was communicated through the characters.
"That is a very unique thing,” she mused. “We're separate in a way, but I think some of the things that our characters are contending with, and some of the things that Michael and I are contending with personally, we get to explore in the context of these films, and I think that's something that is a gift."
"In terms of some of the things we're unpacking in this, we ask, 'What does your personhood look like when it's not entirely tethered to what you do in the world, what you make, or your success? What is success?’ That's definitely a question we ask ourselves. We're asking those central human questions because we are at a certain point in our lives. We got put inside this script. What does it look like to unpack masculinity? What does friendship look like?"
Jonathan Majors found a very personal connection in his character's name. He was able to play with his moniker fulfilling an "aspiration for freedom" that proved vital.
“It was not just physical freedom but also mental freedom," he revealed. "The character's name was Damian, and then Michael came and was like, 'Damian. Okay, Dame, let's roll with that,' and then his generic last name was up in the air to be changed potentially. I said, 'Well, how about Anderson?' Anderson is my mother's last name. One of the highlights of the experience was when Mike said yes to that."
The grounding continued on set. Majors continued, "When I walked in, you know, the day of fighting, we've done all our prep, I'm in a Creed movie, and I'm about to fight Michael B. Jordan. You're a little nervous, but you look out there and see 'Adonis,' you see 'Anderson,' and it's like, 'Oh, we're here now. This is us.' It was a huge gift from our director, Michael, and it emboldened the process."
Producer Ryan Coogler spotlighted his evolving relationship with the cast, especially Jordan, who has worked with multiple times outside the Creed franchise. The actor’s ascension to director was something he suspected would happen a decade ago.
"What I like most about working with the changes. Over ten years, relationships change, and people change. What was best about working with Michael when we first started has shifted now," Coogler explained. "I know him well, so I think there's an added color that comes with that. When I first met him, I knew he could act, so it's not a surprise, but seeing the growth and the shifts, I'm seeing him knock it out of the park in each thing but not without struggles and going to the mat and having to get back up. It's satisfying, rewarding, and affirming."
"I thought this way about Tessa, I felt this way about Jonathan, and I talk about authorship. They're acting now, but I could see a world where it's 'Directed by Tessa Thompson' or 'Directed by Jonathan Majors.' As a filmmaker, I get excited about these movies because I want to watch them."
"I like to see that suspicion I have about this creative affirmed ten years later," the producer continued. "It's like, 'Yeah, he had it in him,' and that's fantastic to be a part of."
Aside from the name change, Majors also found an additional connection between his character's journey and his own experiences growing up, inspired by the hustle and hard knocks of those in front of him.
"My stepdad, Joe, was locked up for 15 years before he got with my mom and raised me. There was the ankle monitor situation, the parole officer and I was the kid trying to make sure Dad got home on time before the PO got to the crib. I watched that happen," the actor revealed.
"He tried out for the Dallas Cowboys and almost made it. He was in the second round. I watched that aspiration and that hustle. I watched that dream that he had, so there's a big part about that big, hard shell and that young boy who aspired to be more free."
Major continued, "Then we have the brother and Ryan's best friend, Delo, who was essentially my touchstone. He experienced very much the life that Dame had experienced, and there's a certain decorum to the lifestyle he had."
"As far as other inspirations, it was watching all the Rocky films. It was very clear to me that the really important thing was who Adonis was in this third installment, how to antagonize this character, and how to help him continue his hero's journey. Dame lives and dies on his relationship with Adonis Creed. Everything else is set decoration."