I saw Creed on the weekend, which, for all intents and purposes, is the seventh Rocky film in everything but name. However, here, Sylvester Stallone cleverly relegates his pugilistic underdog to a secondary role in favour of the titular character, Adonis Creed.

I was apprehensive at first, but I needn’t have been – Michael B. Jordan is perfect in the role of Adonis, son of the flamboyant and charismatic Apollo Creed. Jordan has the physicality and the mannerisms (without becoming parody), and bears more than a passing resemblance to Carl Weathers, who played Apollo in the first four Rocky films. Jordan is a fantastic casting choice.

Although there is nothing earth shattering about the development of the plot, and it does colour outside of the lines a little with the timeline and events of the Rocky universe (which only a well-versed fan would know), it is a very solid entry in the series, and a great platform for future films.

Stallone is often written off – wrongly and unfortunately – as a has-been action hero who simply does not have the acting chops for dramatic roles, but for this turn he has deservedly bagged himself an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor. Love or hate the series, Stallone lives and breathes the character of Balboa, and it’s hard to deny that he completely embodies that part in a way that few of his peers could lay claim in their own ouevre.

I look forward to what the future holds for the Rocky/Creed franchise.