Farewell to Carl Weathers, who was Apollo Creed in ‘Rocky’

American actor and former football player Carl Weathers, best known for his role as Apollo Creed in the first four “Rocky” movies, has died at the age of 76, his family announced in a statement.

“He died peacefully in his sleep on Thursday 01.02.2024…Carl was an extraordinary human being who lived an extraordinary life. With his contribution to cinematography, television, art and sport, he left an indelible mark,” his relatives recalled in a farewell text.

With a performing career spanning roughly half a century, Weathers (New Orleans, 1948) He appeared in dozens of notable films, such as the saga ‘Rocky’ (1976); ‘Predator’ (1987) with Arnold Schwarzenegger; ‘Action Jackson’ (1988) and ‘Happy Gilmore’ (1996), and in many other television titles, among the latest being ‘The Mandalorian’ (2019) with Chilean Pedro Pascal.

“He will be recognized all over the world when he leaves generations. “He was a very dear brother, father, grandfather, companion and friend,” the family’s statement concludes.

His most celebrated character was the heavyweight champion of the world Apollo Creed in “Rocky” (1976) due to the anthology fights against Sylvester Stallone, who played the main role of Rocky himself in this very popular franchise.

Time repeated itself in “Rocky II” (1979), “Rocky III” (1982) and “Rocky IV” (1985)delivery in which he loses his life in the ring at the hands of Russian heavyweight Ivan Drago (played by Dolph Lundgren).

He also voiced one of the characters in the Oscar-winning “Toy Story 4” (2019) and already participated in the television special ‘Toy Story of Terror’, released six years earlier.

The small screen was his favorite habitat at the beginning of his career. career, making guest appearances on series such as ‘SWAT’ and ‘Starsky and Hutch’ during the 1970s.

In addition, Weathers played football in the San Diego State Universitywhere he graduated in theater and played the 1970 season in the professional NFL league for the Oakland Raiders.