For “Creed” star Michael B. Jordan, stepping behind the camera for his directorial debut in “Creed III” is following in the very famous footsteps of the original star of the franchise — Sylvester Stallone. After the critical success of “Rocky,” for which he wrote the screenplay, Stallone took over directing duties from John G. Avildsen, directing “Rocky II,” which became a box office smash, cementing Stallone as an unlikely action star auteur. Hopefully Jordan manages a similar trajectory with “Creed III,” which is a solid directorial debut featuring a knockout performance from Jonathan Majors.
There’s a meta element to Jordan’s move behind the camera that’s mimicked in Adonis Creed’s journey in the screenplay by Keenan Coogler and Zach Baylin. Adonis aka Donnie (Jordan) has hung up the gloves and moved into a promoter role, supporting the championship aspirations of Felix Chavez (played by pro boxer Jose Benavidez), and spending time with his family, wife Bianca (Tessa Thompson) and daughter Amara (Mila Davis-Kent).
The domestic challenges — finding his purpose outside of the ring, reckoning with the history of his relationship with his adopted mother (Phylicia Rashad), and learning to express himself with his wife — are fairly standard issue and not all that compelling, beyond what the actors bring to the role. Where “Creed III” really starts to stir to life is in the introduction of Jonathan Majors as a figure from Donnie's dark and violent childhood.
