Creed II is a 2018 American sports drama film directed by Steven Caple Jr. from a screenplay by Juel Taylor and Sylvester Stallone.

It stars Michael B. Jordan, Stallone, Tessa Thompson, Wood Harris, Phylicia Rashad, Florian Munteanu, and Dolph Lundgren.

The film received generally positive reviews from critics, who praised the performances (particularly those of Stallone, Jordan, and Lundgren), character development, and Caple's direction, while noting its predictability.

In Ukraine, Ivan Drago, the former Soviet boxer who killed Adonis' late father Apollo during a bout in 1985, has been living destitute since losing to Rocky that year,[b] and seeks to regain glory.

However, Adonis becomes overwhelmed by his life's recent developments, rushes into the match in Barclays Center unprepared, is badly injured by Viktor.

Mary Anne reaches out to Rocky, who reconciles with Adonis and agrees to train him for a rematch against Viktor, who is suffering torturous physical tests at Ivan's hands.

While Viktor taunts Adonis publicly, he faces constant pressure from his father behind the scenes, who enjoys the attention of the media and various Russian delegates.

Ludmilla departs after the second knockdown, deeply upsetting Viktor, who loses the will to fight, and Ivan sees the truth of his son's earlier words.

On January 5, 2016, Sylvester Stallone and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures CEO Gary Barber confirmed to Variety that a sequel to Creed was in development.

[11] However, in December 2017, it was reported that Steven Caple Jr. would instead direct the film with Tessa Thompson confirmed to reprise her role of Bianca, Creed's love interest.

[13] In March 2018, Russell Hornsby joined the cast and Phylicia Rashad, Wood Harris, and Andre Ward were confirmed to reprise their roles from the prior film.

The visual effects were provided by Zero VFX and Mr. X and Supervised by Eric Robinson, Dan Cayer, and Crystal Dowd with the help of Crafty Apes.

[2] In the United States and Canada, Creed II was released alongside Ralph Breaks the Internet and Robin Hood, and the wide expansion of Green Book, and was projected to gross $44–54 million from 3,350 theaters in its five-day opening weekend.

The website's critical consensus reads, "Creed II's adherence to franchise formula adds up to a sequel with few true surprises, but its time-tested generational themes still pack a solid punch.

[25] Odie Henderson of RogerEbert.com gave the film three out of four stars, stating that "Creed II falls victim to the sins of sequelitis—it's bigger, louder and more grandiose than its predecessor—yet manages to right itself by not losing focus on the humanity of its central characters.

"[31] Owen Gleiberman of Variety called the film "rousing and effective" and wrote "Creed II has been made with heart and skill, and Jordan invests each moment with such fierce conviction that he makes it all seem like it matters.

"[32] Eric Kohn of IndieWire gave the film a "B", praising Stallone's performance and saying: "Kramer Morgenthau's cinematography lacks the showy steadicam acrobatics of Creed, but the climactic battle between Adonis and Viktor still delivers a dazzling light show that dovetails right into the visceral mayhem of the battle, captured from so many angles some viewers may reel from the punches themselves.

"[33] In response to the suggestion that Deontay Wilder could play the son of Clubber Lang in a potential Creed III, both Sylvester Stallone and Michael B. Jordan expressed interest in such a character being featured in the plot of the next installment.