News

RIP Carl Weathers

By Kevin Kinkead

Published: Feb 2nd, 2024 · 3:46 PM EST

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Carl Weathers died:

Carl Weathers has sadly passed away at the age of 76. pic.twitter.com/0KAgbl0jQE

— DiscussingFilm (@DiscussingFilm) February 2, 2024

Damn. This one hurts.

You know Weathers for a variety of great roles. Obviously Apollo Creed from the Rocky films is most recognizable in these parts, but I’m not sure people knew about his football career. He spent a short time with the Oakland Raiders, and then played a couple of seasons with the BC Lions in the Canadian League. He was a standout at San Diego State and part of the undefeated team that finished in the top 25 and won the 1969 Pasadena Bowl. He actually segued into an acting career that began with small roles while he was still a football player.

Some of the film and TV credits that are most noteworthy:

• Rocky 1, 2, 3, and 4 – Apollo Creed
• Predator – Colonel Al Dillon
• Action Jackson – Jericho “Action” Jackson
• Street Justice – Adam Beaudreaux
• In the Heat of the Night – Chief Hampton Forbes
• Happy Gilmore – Chubbs
• The Mandalorian – Greef Karga

Those are just a few standouts. He appeared in all sorts of shows. There were a couple of episodes of Arrested Development and Chicago P.D. He also did some voice work for video games and animated films.

But yeah, Rocky was the biggest one. Most Crossing Broad readers and Philadelphia sports fans will know Apollo Creed much more any other character Weathers played. Here’s the famous training montage:

Apollo Creed and Rocky’s iconic training montage.

Rest in Peace Carl Weathers (1948 – 2024) pic.twitter.com/DWhRpTzPck

— DiscussingFilm (@DiscussingFilm) February 2, 2024

And the famous “Happy Place” scene:

ESPN and other outlets received a statement from Weathers’ family, which says he died peacefully in his sleep. He was 76 years old. RIP.