Sylvester Stallone, the writer and star of the Rocky series, stated that Jack Johnson was the inspiration for the character of Apollo Creed.

Creed had many nicknames, including "The King of Sting," "The Dancing Destroyer," "The Prince of Punch," "The Count of Monte Fisto," and most prominently "The Master of Disaster.

A frustrated Creed is unwilling to waste the time, effort, and money he's already invested in the fight, so he comes up with a novel idea he believes will generate publicity—he will offer an unknown local fighter an opportunity to battle for the title in a match in Philadelphia.

Creed brushes off his manager Tony "Duke" Evers' warning that he shouldn't fight the left-handed Rocky, pledging to knock him out in three rounds.

Both fighters are beaten, bloodied, and bruised by the end of the bout – Balboa with severe eye damage and Creed with internal bleeding in his abdomen.

Not wanting a repeat of the first fight (and ignoring the pleas of his trainers), he vows to knock Balboa out rather than take the safer route by winning on points.

When he offers Lang a handshake, the latter slaps away Creed's hand and mockingly insists that he "don't want no has-been messin' in my corner."

Despite hesitating at first, Balboa agrees to let Creed train him for a rematch against Lang, who laughs off the prospect of "one has-been teaching another" during a television interview.

Highlighted by a pre-match rendition of "Living in America" by James Brown, Apollo enters the arena from a descending scaffold overhead, dancing to the music in his old red, white, and blue Uncle Sam outfit.

An enraged Rocky then sets out to avenge Apollo's death by challenging Drago himself and agrees to an unsanctioned 15-round bout in the Soviet Union.

Later, during Rocky's street fight with Tommy, he begins to hallucinate and sees images of Apollo's death at the hands of Drago, believing that he is about to suffer the same fate.

Seventeen years later, presumed to be a well-educated young man, Donnie (Michael B. Jordan) leaves his job to pursue a full-time career in boxing.

When the word got out that Donnie is Apollo's illegitimate son, the media heavily publicized the story of his infidelity, which catches the eye of the trainer for the reigning light-heavyweight champion, "Pretty" Ricky Conlan (Tony Bellew).

Leading up to the fight, Rocky has been diagnosed with cancer, which greatly impacts Donnie's behavior, including being incarcerated for the night after a brawl at a club.

Before the final round, Rocky is adamant on stopping the fight to save Donnie from the long-term effects of his injuries, a decision he contemplated 30 years after Apollo's death.

[clarification needed] In the closing seconds of the fight, Donnie finally unleashes a style that is comparable to his father's and Rocky's, and manages to knock down Conlan for the first time in his career.

A split decision determines Conlan the winner of the fight, and gives Donnie the ultimate respect, telling him that he's "the future of this division."

The match is billed as "Creed vs. Drago II" and will be held at MGM Grand, the same place where Ivan killed Apollo, with many speculating it could end the same way.

By the 10th round, Viktor is exhausted and unable to defend himself, so Ivan throws in the towel to save his son, resulting in Donnie's victory.

[13] John Hansen calls Apollo "an over-the-top, glistening specimen in this first movie, a carnival-barking cartoon mixed with athletic perfection" whose ring entrance in American flag-colored George Washington garb is the biggest indication that the sequels would feature opponents with "deliciously evocative names and billboard-sized personalities.

"[14] Richard Corliss of Time notes the original film's "boxing-movie clichés — the grizzled trainer (Burgess Meredith), the shy, sallow girlfriend (Talia Shire), the unbeatable champ Apollo Creed (Carl Weathers, briefly a linebacker for the Oakland Raiders)".

[15] Liam Gaughan of Collider writes that Rocky II addresses an underdog becoming an icon and how an "arrogant celebrity" can cope with being overshadowed by the former champ.

According to Gaughan, Creed knows his career is challenged and notes that although the film "doesn’t specifically mention the racial pressure of being matched by a white man on a national stage, it's an impossible factor to ignore that lingers over the story, and Weathers delivers a much more vulnerable depiction of the heavyweight champ.

"[17] John Orquiola writes that Clubber "had every right to be confident because he destroyed Balboa in a way even Apollo never could" and opines that Creed was never a bad guy despite being "a proud and arrogant champion."

"[19] Ewan Gleadow writes that the third film gives a sense that its struggling story is aided by "placing characters in familiar scenarios but in different roles" and cites Apollo and Rocky as "together again, but as allies rather than enemies.

"[20] After three films in which he functions as little more than a means to illustrate Rocky’s greatness, Apollo is offered the highest of honors: He dies to provide the franchise’s white protagonist with motivation and character development.

[22] /Film credits the director's cut of the fourth film with better explaining why Apollo "is so eager to step into the ring with Drago — a decision that will ultimately cost him his life."

"[21] Had Apollo survived, Carl Weathers believes his character would advise Adonis against boxing but would agree to train him as there was no one "better to show his son the ropes than the greatest.

In terms of weaknesses, his only major drawback appears to be his deep sense of pride and strong self-confidence, which allows Rocky to get an edge over him in the ring by surprising Creed in their first encounter.

[28] Stephen Carty cited Apollo training Rocky in the third film as "a nice twist" and added that "more Weathers screen-time is always good".