Carl Weathers, the Apollo Creed from “Rocky,” died Thursday, his family announced. He was 76 years old.
Carl Weathers passed away at the age of 76. Indeed, the famous interpreter of Apollo Creed in the Rocky saga, who we recently saw in the series The Mandalorian, is no more.
“We are deeply saddened to announce the passing of Carl Weathers”, his family said in a statement (via Deadline). “He died peacefully in his sleep on Thursday, February 1, 2024. Carl was an exceptional human being who lived an extraordinary life. Through his contributions to film, television, the arts and sports, he has left an indelible mark and is recognized around the world and across generations. He was a beloved brother, father, grandfather, partner and friend.”
FAMEFLYNET / BESTIMAGE Carl Weathers, Sylvester Stallone, Michael B. Jordan at the premiere of ‘Creed’ at The Regency Village Theater in Westwood, November 19, 2015
From athlete to actor
Star of professional football at San Diego State and the Canadian League until 1974, Carl Weathers decided that year to retire from the world of sport in order to devote himself to a new goal: becoming an actor. He quickly obtained a small role in Bucktown, which he filmed in 1975, and in the series The Man Who Was Worth 3 Billion.
But it was in 1976, two years after launching his career, that he already played the role that would make him famous: he was the famous Apollo Creed (whose role was initially intended for the boxer Ken Norton), nicknamed killer dancer who is both mentor and adversary of Rocky Balboa in Rocky and Rocky II, before deciding in 1982, once he retired, to train the latter in Rocky III (without forgetting to remind him that he must have the “eye of the tiger”). We find him one last time in this role in 1982 for Rocky IV, where a fight, planned to be only an exhibition, will ultimately cost him his life.
In 1987, thanks to his meeting with producer Joel Silve, he obtained a starring role alongside that of Arnold Schwarzenegger in Predator, the film at the origin of the famous saga. The following year, he played a leading role for the first time in Action Jackson, a film also produced by Joel Silverbut which this time went somewhat unnoticed by the public and critics.
MGM
Between television and cinema
Carl Weathers At the same time, he continued his career as an actor on television, playing in series such as L’Enfer du dévoir (for five episodes in 1989), and even tried his hand as a director in 2000 for an episode of La Loi du fugitif and a episode of Life Above All. We then see him as a guest in Arrested Development and in The Shield.
He then played the humor card in Happy Gilmore (1996) and Little Nicky (2000), two comedies with Adam Sandler in which he played the character of Chubbs Peterson. This reconversion from action to comedy seemed to succeed for him since in 2007, he returned in The Comebacks, where he starred in a role that allowed him to reconnect with his first loves… since he was a coach American football!
Disney+
Actor, director and bounty hunter in Star Wars
Always playing roles on television, we find him in 2016 in Colony then in the recurring role of Mark Jefferies in the series Chicago Fire, Chicago PD, Chicago Justice and New York Special Unit, between 2016 and 2018. At the same time, he lends his voice in numerous animated projects and video games, while directing episodes of Chicago Med, FBI, New York Police Judicial, The Last OG, Hawaii Five-0 and For the People.
It was in 2019 that he finally landed his last role, and not the least: that of Greef Karga, head of the Bounty Hunters Guild, in the Star Wars series, The Mandalorian. Appearing nine episodes of the series over the course of three seasons, the character gradually got closer to the Mandalorian himself, played by Pedro Pascal. At the same time, the actor also got back behind the camera by directing two episodes of seasons 2 and 3 of the show. For his role in the series, Carl Weathers will be nominated for an Emmy for Outstanding Guest Star Actor in a Drama Series in 2021.