Dolph Lundgren Dishes On Alternate 'Creed 2' Ending For Ivan Drago
WARNING: This story contains SPOILERS for Creed 2
Creed 2 is now in theatres and features a familar face for fans of the Rocky series.
33 years after Rocky Balboa defeated Ivan Drago in Rocky IV, Ivan's son, Viktor, takes his turn in the ring by challenging Adonis Creed, son of Apollo Creed, to a world heavyweight title fight. In Rocky IV, Apollo Creed is fatally defeated by Ivan Drago in a fight in Las Vegas.
The fight in Creed 2 is a redemption match of sorts for Ivan Drago, who tells Balboa that he lost everything including his wife after losing their bout.
A match between Creed and Drago is set up. Drago handily wins the first match in the film but is disqualified for hitting Creed while he was down. Creed retains his title. Still seeking the title belt, the Dragos push for a rematch, which Creed gives them after a long period of recovery from the initial loss.
• What happened to Ivan Drago after he lost to Rocky?
Balboa sat out the first match against Viktor Drago but decides to re-join Creed's camp for a hard training stint in seculsion in the California desert. Creed shows up to the next fight in better shape and wins a grueling duel, where both opponents were knocked down multiple times. The fight ends with Ivan Drago throwing in the towel for his son after Viktor could not endure much more. The Dragos embrace while Creed celebrates with his family and Balboa watching from outside the ring. The last shot in which the Dragos are seen together, they are back in Ukraine and running alongside each other, which is a stark contrast to a previous training scene where Ivan is driving a car and pushing Viktor to his limits.
In an interview with Slashfilm.com, Dolph Lundgren (who plays Drago) discusses an alternate ending for Creed 2 that shows Drago's remorse for killing Apollo Creed and making amends with Balboa:
"He had remorse for it and I think the way it was described in the script is that he does tell Rocky, “I did not mean for your friend to die.” That line was taken out but I think he had remorse. He was a young man and obviously had to sort of take the blame off himself, a natural reaction. You want to blame other people, especially for something painful. So he blames it on Apollo, Apollo was just not strong enough to survive. You get in the ring in boxing, you get hurt, you get hurt. I think that’s how Drago thinks about it but I think inside he’s sorry about it. At the end there was a scene where me and Rocky kind of make up and I also make amends with Adonis for his father. There was a locker room scene that is not in the picture. I don’t know if it was too soft or it was too much maybe, or maybe it’s left for Creed III. I don’t know."
The scene was shot but not used in the final version of the film.
"At the end, after the fight, Adonis and Rocky are walking back and they see Ivan taking the wraps off his son’s hands and kind of comforting him. He’s feeling bad for losing. I leave the room and Adonis walks in and talks to my son. I come back in and we have a moment, me and Adonis, and then I have a moment with Rocky after that. That was taken off. Maybe it was too much or maybe it was too emotional or too soft. Maybe redemption comes next time around."
In an interview with Bill Simmons on The Bill Simmons Podcast, Michael B. Jordan expressed interest in filming more Creed films.
