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(Trailer) Rocky IV Director’s Cut Adds 40 Minutes of Unseen Footage… and Mickey?!

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If I can change… And you can change… then Rocky IV can change too!

Sylvester Stallone’s long awaited ultimate director’s cut of the fan favorite Rocky IV finally has a trailer, release date, and some more details of what to expect in the anticipated version that fans have been clamoring for months on end. While we already know Drago has more dialogue and Sico the Robot has been scrapped entirely from the film, we also know that Mickey, Rocky’s trainer who died in the middle of Rocky III, makes an appearance in this film too in the form of flashbacks scenes in the finale fight with Drago. Along with some scenes of Adrian and Rocky from what appears to be the original film, the flashback scenes added to the fight supply dimension and the will for Balboa get up and beat Drago’s ass in what is supposed to be, his last fight ever.

So basically, they took the footage from Rocky V, and inserted it into Rocky IV. Got it.

Stallone himself has admitted on several occasions he wasn’t too pleased with the end result of Rocky V, and fans agree as it certainly is unanimously denounced as the weakest of the franchise. So perhaps it would be fitting for the guy to take some pieces of the film and add it to the beloved sequel to give it some depth. I mean, I don’t care how much you discard Rocky V, those dream sequences with Mickey were some tear-jerking emotional stuff that really does showcase the bond between the fighter and his trainer.

Rocky IV has an additional 40 minutes of unseen footage, some of which has been re-added from the original trailer from 1985- remember the original trailer had the Boxing Board discussing what to do about Drago himself, ” He’s had ONE fight, and ONE man is dead,”? Well that’s in there-finally because that always drove me nuts, as well as extended fight footage and new songs as well to montage out to! WOOHOO!

Rocky IV returns to theaters for ONE NIGHT ONLY via Fathom events on November 11, 2021, with the movie coming to VOD on streaming services the following day. Grab your tickets here!

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Stallone Gives Update On “Rocky 4” Director’s Cut

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Chances are if you’re here reading this, you might be a contender as a mega Rocky IV fanatic because the truth of the matter us, I’ll never goddamn get tired of talking about this franchise and this installment in particular.

When initially announced, I had made a promise that any updates on this monster of a director’s cut would be reported on and I’m a woman of my word. Following the announcements of the iconic Sico the Robot (a move that I’m still not sold on), being cut entirely from the films in favor of more ring time, Drago dialogue, and two previously cut songs from the film- we finally have an update on the film via Sly’s Instagram.

It seems as if the cut is nearing completion as the “Stallion” states the finishing touches are being added. So one can only assume that we should see this coveted cut of the movie sooner rather than later!

There’s no easy way out of the anxiety that takes over when thinking about a possible, brand new version of one of my favorite flicks ever. However, stay tuned for more updates when the official release is announced!

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Here’s What You Can Expect From The “Rocky IV” Director’s Cut- And It’s Not Sico the Robot

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Over the Summer, we got the fantastic and unexpected news that Sylvester Stallone was working on a massive edit for a long-awaited director’s cut for Rocky IV. Now thanks to Sly being the master of self-promotion that he is and his official Instagram account, we now have a clear(ish) picture of what to expect in this highly anticipated fresh version of the fan favorite of the franchise.

And quite honestly some of you might get a little pissed about this.

One of the biggest bombs dropped about what to expect from this, was the elimination of Paulie’s wacky birthday gift, the robot SICO in this cut. No “Happy Birthday Paulie“. No Rocky Jr. making himself dizzy on the thing while telling his dad his head looks like a “punching mitt”.

Nope. None of that at all. While Sly hasn’t offered an explanation, the creator of the Sico Robot,  Robert Doornick, shared his own recent theory with “Empire” about why Stallone has decided to cut the fan-favorite from the new edition:

“I was in my office when I found out. I was deluged with messages: ‘How can Stallone do that?’ But I know why he’s doing it, because I know he loves the robot. By causing turmoil among the fans of Sico, it generates more publicity. And by removing the robot from the movie, it saves money in royalty fees, because he is a member of the Screen Actors Guild. Sico receives cheques all the time – and of course he sends them over to me.”

Welp. I’m just a peon and no have authority to challenge the Italian Stallion on his own films. So, let’s see how this plays out. I would also assume it was also done to make room for additional footage; such as MORE DRAGO DIAOLGUE.

Oh, yeah. He’s actually going to have more than two sentences this time around. It also looks like via the IG video below that the Apollo/Drago fight might be edited as well. Whether it’s before, after, during, or hell all of the above, remains to be known.

In addition via a fan Q &A on the post, two new songs that were unused for the original film will be added to the feature; and to be perfectly honest, one can’t have too many montages in one of the greatest montage films in cinema history. So you’ll hear no complaints from me.

One final note, while this is speculation at this point and there is no confirmation, the director’s cut MAY actually get a theatrical limited release perhaps before the master cut is available to buy/stream. This is all according to Sly himself answering fan questions and quoted as saying, “I believe it’s going to be released as a feature film first.”

So hey, I guess will find out more soon!

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I love re- editing this film. I have found such fantastic moments that I overlooked many years ago. This is a blessing to go back and get another chance to make it even better! @mgm_studios @dolphlundgren #Rocky4 Directors cut.

A post shared by Sly Stallone (@officialslystallone) on Sep 29, 2020 at 9:18am PDT