If it’s half as good as Rocky, we’re sold.
With Creed 2 currently filming, you could excuse Sylvester Stallone if he was placing all of his focus on that project but ‘The Italian Stallion’ didn’t become the champ by accident.
Like his most famous character, the Oscar-nominated actor/director has a remarkable work ethic because aside from Creed 2, he’s also working on Rambo 5 and he has just launched a brand new production company.
Balboa Productions will be focused on developing new film and TV projects but their first feature looks set to be a cracker.
In recent months, you may have heard the name of Jack Johnson being mentioned because his life story is absolutely fascinating.
Johnson was the first African American heavyweight of the world from 1908-15 but he was convicted of violating the Mann Act in 1910.
Essentially, the Mann Act made it illegal to transport a woman across state lines for “immoral purposes.” Johnson’s charge was entirely motivated by race and after being sentenced to a year in prison, he fled the country and boxed abroad for 7 years until 1920 when he served his sentence at the federal penitentiary at Levenworth. He died in 1946.
He has only recently been posthumously pardoned by President Trump.
Johnson’s story is deeply personal to Stallone because he was actively involved in the campaigned for justice on Johnson’s behalf.
In recent weeks, Stallone, U.S Senator John McCain and the documentarian Ken Burns successfully advocated for a pardon for Johnson.
In terms of its story, we’re envisioning a mix of Rocky and The Hurricane. If it’s half as good as those two films, we could be in for something special.
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