Sylvester Stallone will go down in history as a screen legend. Whatever you think of The Expendables franchise, there’s no denying that Rocky is a masterpiece, and it can be mostly attributed to Stallone’s contributions. Rocky succeeds because it’s true to itself. It created a formula that’s been copied a thousand times, but most of those movies don’t have the personal touch that made Rocky great.
As an actor with next to no experience fighting his way into a leading role by writing a spectacular script, Stallone was his own kind of underdog behind the scenes. He used that to bring the ultimate underdog hero to life. So, here are 10 Underdog Sports Movies To Watch If You Like Rocky.
Friday Night Lights
Although it’s now mostly known for being the basis for the hit NBC drama series of the same name, Friday Night Lights is a brilliant movie about a high school football team’s run at the state championship. Billy Bob Thornton stars as the team’s coach, nailing his performance and anchoring the whole story.
The movie was directed with grace by Peter Berg, who would go on to helm such socio-politically charged thrillers as Lone Survivor, Deepwater Horizon, and Patriots Day. Friday Night Lights is an all-time great of both sports movies and high school movies, while also succeeding as a drama.
Invincible
The stories of real-life underdogs who became sports legends get bonus points, because they really happened. Invincible tells the true story of Vince Papale, a bartender from South Philly who took part in open try-outs for the Eagles in the mid-‘70s and, against all odds, actually made it onto the team.
Mark Wahlberg stars as Papale, alongside Greg Kinnear as his coach, Dick Vermeil. The movie deviates from the actual events when it comes to a few minor details, but the crucial part – the fact that, through plucky determination, a regular guy got to play for the Eagles – is left intact.
The Mighty Ducks
The first (and still the best) movie in a long-running franchise, The Mighty Ducks stars Emilio Estevez as Gordon Bombay, an arrogant defense attorney who is tasked with coaching a Pee-Wee hockey team after being arrested for drunk driving. As he coaches the hopeless eponymous team, he gets a new lease on life and actually starts to root for them.
The Mighty Ducks and its sequels were written by Steven Brill, a frequent collaborator of Adam Sandler’s, who imbued the movie with a delightfully absurdist sensibility. It’s a parody of underdog sports movies while simultaneously being an underdog sports movie.
Warrior
The best sports movies have personal stakes. If the opponent that the hero faces is just some guy, then there isn’t any emotional weight to the action. Warrior is a little like Rocky with mixed martial arts in place of boxing. Joel Edgerton and Tom Hardy star as two estranged brothers who take part in an MMA tournament.
As they each progress through the ranks, it comes down to just the two of them, and they have to fight each other for the championship title. Nick Nolte shines as the duo’s grizzled father, who they both just want to impress.
Cool Runnings
Loosely based on the debut of the Jamaica national bobsleigh team in the 1988 Winter Olympics in Canada, Cool Runnings is the ultimate underdog story. Jamaica is one of the hottest countries in the world, so the bobsleigh team doesn’t get many opportunities to practise under the right conditions. John Candy plays the team’s coach, while Leon Robinson, Doug E. Doug, Rawle D. Lewis, and Malik Yoba make up the team itself.
Cool Runnings has much more of a comedic bent than Rocky – the script went through a bunch of rewrites to ensure that it was really funny – which makes it stand out on its own within this subgenre of sports movies.
Slap Shot
This hard-R comedy tells the story of a minor league ice hockey team, led by Paul Newman as Reg Dunlop, that resorts to violent play to win over fans. Slap Shot has a ton of subplots and sometimes loses track of them all, but ultimately, this isn’t a movie where narrative is all that important.
The feel of the movie, set by its raunchy humor and lovable cast of characters, is the most significant element here. Newman said that he didn’t swear much before shooting Slap Shot, but after making the movie, he started cursing as much as his character, Dunlop.
The Fighter
Mark Wahlberg stars as boxing champion Micky Ward in this critically acclaimed biopic, alongside Christian Bale as his half-brother and trainer, Dicky Eklund. David O. Russell directed the movie, and it may just be his finest work yet. The Fighter is a lot more grounded than Rocky, as it deals with such powerful social issues as drug addiction and the class divide.
It swept the Oscar nominations, landing nods for Best Picture and Best Director among others, and it became the first movie to win both Best Supporting Actor (for Bale) and Best Supporting Actress (for Melissa Leo) since Hannah and Her Sisters.
Rudy
Not to be confused with the made-for-TV biopic of Rudy Giuliani starring James Woods, Rudy is one of the most inspirational sports movies ever made. It’s based on the life of Daniel “Rudy” Ruettiger (played by The Lord of the Rings’ Sean Astin), who faced endless obstacles in pursuit of a football career at the University of Notre Dame.
Jon Favreau and Vince Vaughn, the central duo from Swingers, both appear in supporting roles in Rudy. This is a movie about the human spirit, and Ruettiger’s determination to achieve his dreams, and it’s also about overcoming the challenges that life throws at you.
A League Of Their Own
Directed by the late, great Penny Marshall, A League of Their Own tells the true-to-life (albeit fictionalized) story of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League, an all-female baseball league that was started while most of the male players were out of the country, fighting in World War II.
Geena Davis is a compelling, likable lead as a catcher-turned-assistant manager, while Tom Hanks shines in one of his most iconic performances as her team’s reluctant manager. This is one of those incredibly rare comedy-dramas that genuinely makes you laugh with its comedy and genuinely makes you feel something with its drama.
Creed
Directed by Ryan Coogler, the visionary behind Black Panther, Creed is a sequel/spin-off from the Rocky franchise starring Michael B. Jordan (who has appeared in every Coogler film to date) as the estranged son of Apollo Creed, struggling to live up to the family name on the boxing circuit.
Sylvester Stallone reprises his role as Rocky Balboa to train the young Creed for his first big fight. Just like Stallone before him, Jordan is a lead that you can really root for. Creed is a testament to the formula that Rocky began, following the familiar beats while still feeling fresh and inspired.
