Sylvester Stallone regrets killing off Apollo Creed

Sylvester Stallone harbours deep regrets about killing off Carl Weathers’ movie fighter Apollo Creed in Rocky Iv.
The veteran action man made the confession on Instagram as he shared a birthday message for Weathers, who turned 71 on Monday (14Jan19).
“HAPPY BIRTHDAY to Carl Weathers!” he captioned a series of old photos of the pair on set.
“Your performances were amazing! … Besides being a great actor he is the BEST cinema boxer of ALL TIME ! Truly amazing , GRACE , POWER , and UNBELIEVABLY FAST!!!!! Never ever to be duplicated! Thank you my friend, never could have done it without you!!!”
Stallone, who starred as titular character Rocky Balboa in the boxing franchise, went on to admit he was wrong for having Weathers’ Creed beaten to death by Russian ring rival Ivan Drago, played by Dolph Lundgren, in the 1985 movie.
“I have to admit I regret having Apollo passing away so soon,” added Sylvester, who also wrote and directed the project. “He was Irreplaceable…”
Despite having Apollo killed off onscreen, his legacy has continued with the spin-off franchise Creed, starring Michael B. Jordan as his son Adonis Creed, who sets out to avenge the death of his father in last year’s (18) Creed II as he faces off with Drago’s son, Viktor.
Reports suggest Stallone actually wanted to bring Weathers back for flashback scenes in the Creed sequel, but was overruled by director Steven Caple Jr.
Creed II featured the return of Lundgren as Ivan, with Brigitte Nielsen also reprising her Rocky IV role as his ex-wife, Ludmilla Drago.