Hollywood and fans everywhere are mourning the great Carl Weathers, who died on Thursday at the age of 76. Best known for playing Apollo Creed in the Rocky films, his prolific career also included Predator, Happy Gilmore and The Mandalorian.
Now, several of his famous co-stars — including action legends Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger — are singing his praises and paying tribute.
Stallone: “Apollo, keep punching”
Carl Weathers’ best-known role was Apollo Creed in the first four Rocky movies. Beginning the series as a heavyweight champ and rival of Sylvester Stallone’s Rocky Balboa, he later becomes Rocky’s close friend and trainer.
That friendship extended off-screen, and Stallone had a lot of love and respect for his longtime co-star. After Weathers’ passing was announced on Friday, Sly shared a tribute on his Instagram account.
“We lost a legend yesterday,” Stallone wrote. “My life was forever changed for the better the day I met Carl Weathers.”
“Today is an incredibly sad day for me,” Stallone says in the video. “I mean, I’m so torn up I can’t even tell you. I’m just trying to hold it in because Carl Weathers was such an integral part of my life, my success, everything about it. I give him incredible credit and kudos, because when he walked into that room, and I saw him for the first time, I saw greatness, but I didn’t realize how great.”
“I never could have accomplished what we did with Rocky without him. He was absolutely brilliant. His voice, his size, his power, his athletic ability, but more importantly, his heart, his soul. It’s a horrible loss.”
“He was magic, and I was so fortunate to be part of his life. So, Apollo, keep punching.”
Their on-screen partnership got off to an unusual start: Weathers recalled that, while auditioning for the original Rocky film, he insulted Stallone’s acting chops, thinking he was only the screenwriter.
“I just blurted out, ‘I could do a lot better if you got me a real actor to work with,’” he recalled to the Hollywood Reporter. “So I just insulted the star of the movie without really knowing it and not intending to.”
It marks the second time this year that Stallone has said goodbye to one of his close Rocky co-stars: Burt Young, who played Rocky’s best friend and brother-in-law Paulie in all six films, died in October. Stallone paid tribute, calling him an “incredible man and artist.”
Schwarzenegger: Weathers will “always be a legend”
Sly wasn’t the only acting legend paying tribute to Weathers. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who starred with Weathers in the classic action film Predator (in which the two men performed the best handshake in movie history) also shared some kind words.
“Carl Weathers will always be a legend. An extraordinary athlete, a fantastic actor, and a great person. We couldn’t have made Predator without him,” Mr. Schwarzenegger wrote. “And we certainly wouldn’t have had such a wonderful time making it.”
“Every minute with him – on set and off – was pure joy. He was the type of friend who pushes you to be your best just to keep up with him. I’ll miss him, and my thoughts are with his family.”
Weathers had previously recalled the experience of filming Predator with Schwarzenegger, saying there was both wild camaraderie as well as macho competition among the cast.
“You know, there’s a great line: what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas. What happened during Predator stays in Predator,” Weathers told GQ in 2020. “There were nightclubs. We were a bunch of young guys. We were all in our own way trying to one-up each other.”
“Of course, with training, Arnold had an entire gym there, so we were going to the gym working out to get all puffed up before scenes,” he added. “Nobody wanted to look any weaker than the other guy. So, you know, it was competition constantly; competition in front of the camera, competition behind the camera, competition at night.”
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Tributes from other Hollywood stars
Adam Sandler, who was memorably coached to golf greatness by Mr. Weathers in the comedy Happy Gilmore, shared a lengthy tribute on Twitter.
“A true great man,” Sandler wrote. “Great dad. Great actor. Great athlete. So much fun to be around always. Smart as hell. Loyal as hell. Funny as hell. Loved his sons more than anything. What a guy!! Everyone loved him. My wife and I had the best times with him every time we saw him. Love to his entire family and Carl will always be known as a true legend.”
Jesse Ventura, who co-starred with Weathers and Schwarzenegger in Predator, also shared a tribute.
“We lost an icon. Carl Weathers was a phenomenal talent, a true professional, and a dear friend. All my sympathies and love to his family.”
Stars of The Mandalorian, the Star Wars series that Weathers co-starred recently and directed two episodes of, also paid tribute.
“I will sorely miss my dear friend and brother Carl Weathers,” wrote Giancarlo Esposito. “You are truly one of the most wonderful human beings I have had the honor and pleasure of spending time with! I am grateful for your influence and support of all things good in my life. This is how I will always remember you. My dear friend and brother.”
Series star Pedro Pascal simply put up a photo of Weathers, saying “words fail.”
Michael B. Jordan, who never co-starred with Mr. Weathers but played Apollo Creed’s son Adonis in the Creed film series, also paid tribute.
“We lost a legend,” he wrote in an Instagram story, posting a photo of Weathers.
Rest in peace to the great Carl Weathers, who gave so many iconic performances in classic films. It’s heartwarming to hear such nice words from his old co-stars.
Please share this story in memory of Carl Weathers.
