Carl Weathers, the quarterback-turned-actor who starred in the films “Rocky” and “The Mandalorian,” has died.
NEW YORK: Carl Weathers, the former NFL linebacker turned Hollywood action-comedy star, plays enemy-turned-ally Apollo Creed in the “Rocky” films, takes on Arnold Schwarzenegger in “Predator” and teaches golf in “happy”. Gilmore is dead. He was 76 years old.
Withers died Thursday, his manager Matt Loper said. His family issued a statement saying that he died “peacefully in his sleep.”
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“Carl Weathers will always be a legend,” Schwarzenegger wrote on Instagram. “An extraordinary athlete, an amazing actor and a great person. We couldn’t have made ‘Predator’ without him. We certainly wouldn’t have had such a great time making it.”
Comfortably flexing his muscles on the big screen in “Action Jackson” while joking around on the small screen in shows like “Arrested Development,” Weathers is perhaps most closely associated with Creed, who debuted as the undisputed cocky one. World heavyweight champion in the 1976 movie “Rocky”, starring Sylvester Stallone.
“It puts you on the map and makes your career, so to speak. But that’s a one-time thing, so you have to follow it up with something. And fortunately, those movies kept coming out, and Apollo Creed became more and more in people’s awareness and welcomed into their lives, and he was The right man at the right time.
Most recently, Weathers starred in the hit Disney+ hit The Mandalorian, appearing in all three seasons.
“lost legend”
“We lost a legend yesterday,” Stallone wrote in an Instagram message that included a tribute video. The actor stood in front of a painting of himself and Weathers boxing and said: “Carl Weathers has been an integral part of my life, my success… I give him incredible credit and fame.
“When he walked into that room and I saw him for the first time, I saw greatness. … I could never have accomplished what we did with Rocky without him.
Stallone ended his video by saying: “Apollo, keep hitting.”
Creed, who appeared in the first four Rocky films, memorably died in the 1984 episode of Rocky IV, when he had a confrontation with hulking, steroid-addled Soviet Ivan Drago, played by Dolph Lundgren. Before entering the ring, James Brown sang “Live in America” with the Showgirls and Creed appeared on the balcony wearing shorts, a bra and an Uncle Sam hat, dancing and taunting Drago.
A bloodied Creed collapses in the ring after taking a severe beating, and is trembling and embraced by Rocky as he dies, inevitably setting up a fight between Drago and Rocky. But while Creed is gone, his character, Adonis Creed’s son, Michael B. Jordan, will lead his own boxing trilogy starting in 2015.
“Predator” days.
Withers moved on to 1987’s “Predator,” in which he flexed his portrayals alongside Ventura, Schwarzenegger and a host of others, and the 1988 neo-blaxploitation film “Action Jackson,” in which he trains a flamethrower on a bad guy and asks, “How do you do that?” Like your ribs?” before grilling them.
“We have lost an icon,” former Predator co-star Jesse Ventura previously wrote on Twitter. “Carl Weathers was an exceptional talent, a true professional and a dear friend.”
He later added a fake wooden hand to play a golf pro in the 1996 classic comedy “Happy Gilmore” opposite Adam Sandler and starred in Dick Wolf’s short-lived spin-off series “Chicago Justice” in 2017 and in Disney’s “The Mandalorian” . He received an Emmy Award nomination in 2021. He also voiced Combat Carl in the “Toy Story” franchise.
Sandler paid tribute to his friend on social media, calling him a “great guy” and a “true legend” — “always so fun to be around. Smart as hell. Loyal as hell. Funny as hell.”
Withers grew up admiring actors like Woody Strode, whose combination of physicality and acting prowess in “Spartacus” made an early impression. Others he idolized included actors Sidney Poitier and Harry Belafonte and athletes Jim Brown and Muhammad Ali, stars who broke the mold and color barrier.
“There are a lot of people who came before me that I admired and wanted to emulate their success, who kind of met the standards that they reached in terms of success, who created a path that I was able to walk on and find success as a result of. I hope I can inspire someone,” he told The Detroit News 2023. Another to do well too. I guess I’m just a lucky guy.”
The first days
Withers grew up in New Orleans, and began performing in plays as early as elementary school. In high school, athletics took him down another path, but he would reunite with his first love later in life.
Withers played college football at San Diego State University — majoring in theater — and went on to play one season in the NFL for the Oakland Raiders in 1970.
“When I found football, it was a completely different outlet,” Weathers tells the Detroit News. “It was more about the physical aspect, although one fed into the other. You needed some intelligence because there were playbooks to study and photography to study to get to know the opposition on any given week.
After the Raiders, he joined the Canadian Football League, playing for two years while finishing his offseason studies at San Francisco State University. He earned a BA in Drama in 1974.
After appearing in numerous films and television shows, including “Good Times,” “The Six Million Dollar Man,” “In the Heat of the Night,” and “Starsky & Hutch,” as well as fighting Nazis alongside Harrison Ford In “Force 10”. From Navarone, Withers got his role as Judge in Creed. He told The Hollywood Reporter that his start on the popular series was not auspicious.
He was asked to read with writer Stallone, who was then unknown. Withers read the scene but felt it didn’t land so he blurted out, “I could do much better if I got a real actor to work with.” “So I insulted the star of the movie without really knowing it or not meaning to.” He also lied saying he had any boxing experience.
Later in life, Withers developed a passion for directing and directing episodes of “Silk Stalkings” and the Lorenzo Lamas vehicle “Renegade.” He directed the third season episode of “The Mandalorian.”
Withers introduced himself to another generation when he portrayed himself as an opportunistic, ultra-frugal actor who became involved with the dysfunctional clan at the heart of “Arrested Development.”
Withers’ character likes to save money by making broth from discarded foods — “There’s still plenty of meat on that bone” and “Honey, I’ve got the soup ready!” – And for the right price, he agrees to become an acting coach for the delusional and talentless stage actor Tobias Funke, played by David Cross.
Withers is survived by two sons.
