Opened: November 21, 2018

Directed by: Steven Caple Jr.

Starring: Michael B. Jordan, Sylvester Stallone, Tessa Thompson, Phylicia Rashad, Dolph Lundgren, Florian Munteanu, Wood Harris, Russell Hornsby, Milo Ventimiglia, Andrew Ward & Brigitte Nielsen

The Creed franchise continues with a victorious sequel that not only ups the stakes with the fights but features incredible character development with Michael B. Jordan’s Adonis.

Apollo Creed (Rocky’s Carl Weathers) lost his life during a boxing match with Ivan Drago (Dolph Lundgren). Now that Adonis has taken his place in the ring, Ivan’s son Viktor (Florian Munteanu) challenges him to a match. However, Rocky (Sylvester Stallone) can’t support Adonis’ choice to fight.

Having the fights be personal to the characters makes this an emotional film. When watching the first match on TV, Stallone brilliantly shows the nerves and pain Rocky is experiencing.

Couple that with Adonis and Bianca’s (Tessa Thompson) pregnancy and you find yourself in a (somewhat predictable) plot of history repeating itself.

Final say: Even if you can guess the ending, you’ll still hold your breath. ★★★★☆