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The Rewatchables · October 27, 2020

Rocky IV

host Bill Simmons host Cousin Sal host Kyle Brandt

Sequel or remake: No ten-episode remake

All 17 categories

Who won the movie Ivan Drago / Dolph Lundgren
Overacting Award Carl Weathers

Apex Mountain · 1:17:02

Stallone’s 1985–86 global stardom

Bill Simmons: Rocky IV plus Rambo: First Blood Part II made 1985–86 Stallone’s apex.

Rocky IV was considered a Cold War movie apex candidate, with Red Dawn preferred by one host.

The Neil McCauley “A Book about Metals” Award for Best Line from the Movie · 1:29:05

“Throw the damn towel!”

Bill Simmons: All three hosts selected the same line.

The film

Rocky IV (1985)

Directed by Sylvester Stallone · Sports

91 minutes (theatrical cut)93 minutes (director's cut)

IMDb Letterboxd JustWatch Find on Rotten Tomatoes

Cast

Selected cast credits · Film reference

Sylvester Stallone Robert "Rocky" Balboa

Talia Shire Adrian Pennino Balboa

Burt Young Paulie Pennino

Carl Weathers Apollo Creed

Brigitte Nielsen Ludmilla Vobet Drago

Dolph Lundgren Captain Ivan Drago

Tony Burton Tony "Duke" Evers

Michael Pataki Nicolai Koloff

Rocky Krakoff Rocky Balboa Jr.

David Lloyd Austin Mikhail Gorbachev

Everything from the episode

In the order the hosts got to it. Open a row for the discussion.

1:09:49

Casting What-Ifs

No casting what-if found

In the discussion (2)

Approx. transcript time · 01:09:49Read transcript

The hosts explicitly reported finding no casting alternatives. — Bill Simmons
“Glory of Love” was written for this ending before being rejected and used in The Karate Kid Part II. — Bill Simmons

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1:13:44

Recasting Couch

No change; Arnold Schwarzenegger as Drago rejected

In the discussion (2)

Approx. transcript time · 01:13:44Read transcript

Arnold’s accent and star power made him an intriguing proposed Drago. — Kyle Brandt
The Stallone–Arnold rivalry likely made the proposed casting impossible.

Share this discussion More Recasting Couch answers

1:14:19

Half-Assed Internet Research

Research covered real punches and injuries, the Weathers–Lundgren dispute, Italian dubbing, shooting locations, and T...

Research covered real punches and injuries, the Weathers–Lundgren dispute, Italian dubbing, shooting locations, and Tony Burton’s chess strength.

In the discussion (9)

Approx. transcript time · 01:14:19Read transcript

Stallone and Lundgren agreed to hit each other for real. — Bill Simmons
Lundgren’s chest punch caused Stallone’s heart to swell against his breastbone. — Bill Simmons
Stallone’s blood pressure exceeded 200 and he was airlifted from Canada to a Santa Monica hospital. — Cousin Sal
Carl Weathers nearly left after Lundgren threw him too hard. — Cousin Sal
Filming stopped for four days while Stallone brokered a reconciliation. — Bill Simmons
The Italian “I break you in two” translation became a common phrase. — Bill Simmons
The Russia training scenes were filmed in Wyoming.
The Moscow fight was filmed at Vancouver’s PNE Agrodome. — Bill Simmons
Tony Burton was a strong chess player who reportedly beat Stanley Kubrick on The Shining set. — Bill Simmons

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1:25:07

Picking Nits

Possible charges for Drago, Paulie’s sobriety, Soviet eligibility, the deleted title-belt scene, broken chronology, a...

Possible charges for Drago, Paulie’s sobriety, Soviet eligibility, the deleted title-belt scene, broken chronology, and lack of ringside doctors

In the discussion (7)

Approx. transcript time · 01:25:07Read transcript

Whether Drago could face manslaughter charges for Apollo’s death was debated. — Cousin Sal
Paulie’s apparently improved control of his drinking was left unexplained. — Cousin Sal
A Soviet heavyweight would not have been allowed to box professionals during the Cold War. — Bill Simmons
The deleted boxing-board scene left Rocky’s title surrender unexplained. — Bill Simmons
Apollo’s stated five-year retirement conflicts with the timing of Rocky’s marriage and rematch. — Bill Simmons
Rocky Jr. ages implausibly across Rocky IV and Rocky V. — Bill Simmons
The exhibition inexplicably lacked a visible fight doctor. — Bill Simmons

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1:29:37

Probably Unanswerable Questions

Exhibition rules and betting lines, the mountain, Ludmilla’s swimming career, bromance history, an Adrian plane-crash...

Exhibition rules and betting lines, the mountain, Ludmilla’s swimming career, bromance history, an Adrian plane-crash rewrite, scorecards, and punch statistics

In the discussion (8)

Approx. transcript time · 01:29:37Read transcript

How many rounds was the Creed–Drago exhibition supposed to last? — Cousin Sal
The hosts estimated betting lines for Creed–Drago, Rocky–Apollo, and Rocky–Drago. — Cousin Sal
How high was Rocky’s mountain and how would he return safely? — Kyle Brandt
Was Ludmilla a steroid-using champion swimmer?
Was Rocky and Apollo’s relationship the original movie bromance? — Bill Simmons
Would the movie improve if the KGB shot down Adrian’s flight to Russia?
What was the score heading into round fifteen, given all the knockdowns? — Bill Simmons
Reported punch counts underscored how unrealistic the final fight was. — Bill Simmons