A new movie about the making of Rocky is in the works, featuring a character inspired by young Sylvester Stallone

I Play Rocky, a new movie inspired by Sylvester Stallone and the making of the 1976 boxing film, is in the works.  

Per the movie's official logline, it "follows a struggling actor with a partially paralyzed face and a speech impediment who writes a script that a big movie studio wants to buy, but he refuses to sell it unless he gets to play the lead. Turning down an offer of life-changing money, he instead works for pennies to get the movie made with himself in the starring role." 

Peter Farrelly will helm the movie and Peter Gamble is writing the script. Farrelly also wrote and directed 2018's Green Book, which won the Academy Awards for Best Picture and Best Original Screenplay. More recently, he also directed The Greatest Beer Run Ever and Ricky Stanicky, both of which starred Zac Efron.

Following the underdog story of Stallone's Rocky Balboa from small-time club fighter to taking on the world heavyweight champion, Rocky was nominated for 10 Oscars when it was released in 1976 and won Best Picture. It spawned a franchise that includes six sequels and the Creed trilogy, which follows Apollo Creed's son Adonis. 

There's no mention of Stallone by name in this new movie's logline, so it seems it won't be a straightforward biopic. Casting is currently underway for the lead role. "Like the unknown Stallone starring in Rocky, [Farrelly] will be conducting a worldwide search to discover another actor who just needs one shot – in I Play Rocky – to show the world what he can do," Warner Bros. boss Toby Emmerich said in a statement.

While we wait for I Play Rocky to arrive on our screens, check out our guide to this year's biggest movie release dates.