From “Rocky” to “Creed”: How to watch the full saga
From “Rocky” to “Creed”: How to watch the full saga
Declan GallagherFri, June 5, 2026 at 9:15 PM UTC
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Adrian (Talia Shire), Adonis (Michael B. Jordan), and Rocky (Sylvester Stallone)Credit: Michael Ochs Archives/Getty; Barry Wetcher/MGM Pictures/Warner Bros.; United Artists/GettyKey Points -
Sylvester Stallone rose to stardom playing blue-collar boxer Rocky Balboa.
There are nine movies in the 'Rocky' series, including three centered on Michael B. Jordan's Adonis Creed, son of Apollo.
All of the films are currently streaming on Netflix.
Few film franchises have captured the essence of determination, grit, and heart quite like Rocky. What began in 1976 as the underdog story of a small-time Philadelphia boxer has evolved into a cultural institution. The original film was an underdog tale in its own right, a passion project written by then-obscure actor Sylvester Stallone that wound up becoming a box-office smash and Best Picture winner.
With a legacy spanning five decades and nine films — including the original Rocky films and the Creed spinoffs — the series is about a lot more than just what happens inside the ropes. It's a romance, a family drama, a tale of friendship, a revenge saga, and even, yes, a referendum on the Cold War.
The sheer volume of entries makes it tricky to remember how many there are — and thus how many you have to catch up with. Watching the whole story from the beginning allows you to experience the rise, fall, and resurgence of the blue-collar hero Rocky Balboa — and his passing of the torch to Adonis Creed (Michael B. Jordan), son of Rocky's fallen foe-turned-friend Apollo Creed (Carl Weathers), as a new generation breathes restorative life into the long-running franchise.
Whether you're gearing up for your first marathon or planning a nostalgic rewatch, this guide will walk you through the viewing order for the Rocky and Creed movies. Lace up your gloves, cue Bill Conti's score, and get ready to follow one of cinema's most inspiring sagas from the very beginning.
01 of 09
Rocky (1976)
Rocky (Sylvester Stallone) triumphantly finishes his training montageCredit: MGM
John G. Avildsen's iconic sports drama earned 10 Academy Award nominations and won three, including Best Picture. Stallone stars as Rocky Balboa, a small-time Philly boxer who gets hand-picked to fight the heavyweight champion of the world, Apollo Creed (Weathers), for an unlikely shot at the belt.
Of even greater importance, however, is his burgeoning romance with Adrian (Talia Shire), the shy sister of his best pal Paulie (Burt Young). She becomes his great love and his rock, in and out of the ring. With her at his side — not to mention his memorably crusty trainer, Mickey (Burgess Meredith), Rocky charts a fairy-tale path to boxing immortality.
Stallone penned the script for this star-making vehicle, writing himself the role of a lifetime and launching one of cinema's great rags-to-riches stories.
Where to watch Rocky: Netflix
02 of 09
Rocky II (1979)
Sylvester Stallone in 'Rocky II'Credit: United Artists/Courtesy Everett
Stallone directed this successful follow-up, which finds Apollo eager for a rematch to regain the respect he lost the first time around. Rocky lost the fight by decision, but his unexpectedly resilient performance turned him into a well-respected local celebrity, and he has settled into married life with Adrian. Apollo's reappearance — including a smear campaign against our local hero — threatens to undo the stability Rocky has begun to attain.
Though it's basically the first movie all over again, Rocky II manages to recapture a surprising amount of what made Avildsen's original work. More than any other character he's created, Stallone has an uncanny knack for knowing what makes Rocky, and the characters that orbit him, really tick.
Where to watch Rocky II: Netflix
03 of 09
Rocky III (1982)
Sylvester Stallone in his all-American boxing trunks in 'Rocky III'Credit: James Drake/Getty
Rocky, now the reigning world champ, has a new and worthy challenger in the form of the formidable "Clubber" Lang (Mr. T). This third entry is a fun, frivolous installment that nevertheless signals with blaring alarms that the series is about to jump the shark.
Missing the gritty vigor of the first two films, Rocky III is more focused on violence than its predecessors and less interested in the witty character work that defined the original.
Where this installment really soars, however, is in the development of Rocky and Apollo's relationship. Apollo offers to help train Rocky for his fight with Lang after realizing the challenge he's up against. The final sequence — a late-in-the-day, good-natured match between Creed and Balboa — would've made a terrific full stop to the franchise.
Where to watch Rocky III: Netflix
04 of 09
Rocky IV (1985)
The USA (Stallone) vs. the Soviet Union (Lundgren) in 'Rocky IV'Credit: United Artists/Getty
After Ivan Drago (Dolph Lundgren) kills Apollo in the ring, Rocky takes it upon himself to face the icy Soviet in a revenge bout. Cue the training montage(s).
This sequel functions more as an ad for its soundtrack album while pitting Rocky against all of Communism in the form of Lundgren's hulking baddie. Before Creed came along, there was little here aside from Apollo's demise with lasting narrative weight — though its patriotic, over-the-top energy is hard to forget.
Rocky IV is perhaps the prime instance of a bad sequel being elevated by a later installment. Everything here is beyond fatuous, and one could argue it's insulting to the franchise that birthed it, but it's given fresh resonance with the Creed trilogy.
Where to watch Rocky IV: Netflix
05 of 09
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Rocky V (1990)
Rocky (Sylvester Stallone) trains Tommy Gunn (Tommy Morrison) in 'Rocky V'Credit: United Artists/Courtesy Everett
Avildsen returned for this misbegotten installment, which finds Rocky physically worn down after years of violent combat in the ring. He takes under his wing a prodigious young boxer Tommy "The Machine" Gunn (Tommy Morrison), who quickly rises to fame under the former champ's tutelage. But Rocky's late-career success has troubling implications for his life at home with Adrian and their son, Rocky Jr. (Sage Stallone).
Critics and fans have historically not been kind to Rocky V, but at least it's a fresh direction at a time when the series needed it most. Eschewing the typical framework of a Rocky picture, Avildsen's sequel regains some of the franchise's lost pathos by once again making the title character human. After too many sequels in which Rocky was on top of the world, this one brings him down to size.
Where to watch Rocky V: Netflix
06 of 09
Rocky Balboa (2006)
An older Rocky heads back up the steps in 'Rocky Balboa'Credit: John Bramley/MGM
Stallone returns as director for this legacy sequel. Still mourning Adrian's death and living in an unfulfilling retirement, Rocky is coaxed back into the ring to fight Mason "The Line" Dixon (Antonio Tarver) after a computer simulation suggests he would have beaten Dixon in his prime.
For boxing fans, it's a reminder of how formidable Balboa once was; for the new champ, it's enough to get under his skin. Meanwhile, Rocky attempts to reacquaint himself with his estranged son, Rocky Jr. (Milo Ventimiglia).
Taking some of the best lessons from the original and some of the worst lessons from the sequels, Rocky Balboa is a decidedly mixed bag, but it does deliver for fans craving a more upbeat conclusion than the one offered by Rocky V.
Where to watch Rocky Balboa: Netflix
07 of 09
Creed (2015)
Two generations of underdogs: Michael B. Jordan's Adonis, Sylvester Stallone's Rocky in 'Creed'Credit: Barry Wetcher/Warner Bros.
Stallone earned an Oscar nomination for reprising his signature role in Ryan Coogler's bracing reboot-cum-spinoff. Michael B. Jordan stars as Adonis "Donnie" Creed, the son of Apollo and a small-time fighter in his own right. After deciding he wants to forge a path in the ring, he makes his way to Philly and tracks down Rocky, who runs an Italian restaurant.
Donnie asks him to become his trainer, and the old man agrees; one determined underdog can recognize another. Together, the two prepare for Adonis' bout against "Pretty" Ricky Conlan (Tony Bellew).
Creed hits some of the same beats as the original Rocky — including a sweet romance, as Donnie falls for a local Philly singer named Bianca (Tessa Thompson) — while forging its own identity as a compelling character study. Meanwhile, its fight scenes rival, if not surpass, the franchise's best.
Where to watch Creed: Netflix
08 of 09
Creed II (2018)
Michael B. Jordan in 'Creed II'Credit: Barry Wetcher/Metro Goldwyn Mayer Pictures/Warner Bros. Pictures
Steven Caple Jr. helmed this well-received sequel, which finds Rocky training Adonis for a match against Viktor Drago (Florian Munteanu), son of Ivan, the man who famously killed Apollo in the ring so many years ago.
Featuring characters large and small from throughout the franchise (Ventimiglia's Rocky Jr., Brigitte Nielsen's Ludmilla Drago), Creed II feels like a conclusion to the Rocky series. In wrapping up the stories of Drago and Balboa while teasing more to come from Jordan's title character, the film elegantly positions itself as a handoff from one generation of Rocky to another.
Where to watch Creed II: Netflix
09 of 09
Creed III (2023)
Jonathan Majors and Michael B. Jordan in 'Creed III'Credit: Eli Ade/Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures Inc.
Jordan made his directorial debut withCreed III, which removes Stallone's Rocky from the narrative and positions itself as something closer to a psychological thriller than a sports movie.
After 18 years, Donnie's childhood acquaintance Damian Anderson (Jonathan Majors) is released from prison and determined to make up for lost time — in the ring and beyond. He tracks down Donnie, who agrees to give him a chance, but Dame is harboring darker motives and a buried resentment for a decades-old slight.
Creed III is the first Rocky movie not to feature any members of the original cast. Between this and its predecessor, Jordan deftly ushers the franchise into a new era.
In addition to showcasing Jordan's impressive directorial chops, the film shows that Rocky's rhythms and tropes are surprisingly malleable and attuned to shifting genres.
Where to watch Creed III: Netflix
How to watch the Rocky movies in order: -
Rocky (1976)
Rocky II (1979)
Rocky III (1982)
Rocky IV (1985)
Rocky V (1990)
Rocky Balboa (2006)
Creed (2015)
Creed II (2018)
Creed III (2023)
on Entertainment Weekly
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
