After 60-year-old Rocky Balboa (Sylvester Stallone) went a full ten rounds with Mason “The Line” Dixon (Antonio Tarver) in 2006, it felt impossible to think of the aging and broken boxer stepping back into the ring. The franchise itself, six films deep and running on sweat and steam, seemed like a relic, a reflection of Hollywood’s neverending capacity for naval gazing. The 2000s and 2010s are scattered with the death knells of franchises that overstayed their welcome, so it felt fitting that Stallone would choose to end the series while it was ahead.
