Rocky and The Mandalorian star Carl Weathers passes away at the age of 76

Carl Weathers, best known as Apollo Creed from four “Rocky” movies alongside Sylvester Stallone, has passed away at age 76. Prior to acting he played one season for John Madden’s 1970 Oakland Raiders before transitioning into Hollywood films.

He also demonstrated a flair for comedy roles, playing Chubbs in Adam Sandler’s 1996 golf movie Happy Gilmore and making an amusing parody of himself on Arrested Development. Most recently he appeared as High Magistrate Greef Karga on The Mandalorian.

Table of Contents

Apollo Creed

Carl Weathers made his mark after retiring from professional sports by immortalizing boxer Apollo Creed through three movies depicting the story of Sylvester Stallone’s Apollo Creed mentorship by way of Carl Weathers himself, immortalized him through a trilogy of films that explored that relationship, costarring alongside Arnold Schwarzenegger in Predator as well as appearing on TV programs such as Street Justice, Colony, One Chicago P.D and Chicago P.D.

He added a fourth act to his resume when he played golf pro Ricky Conrad in Adam Sandler’s 1996 movie Happy Gilmore, before going on to portray State’s Attorney Mark Jefferies for one season of Chicago Justice and receiving an Emmy nomination for his portrayal of Greef Karga on Disney+’s Star Wars series The Mandalorian; with an intimidating physique and muscular frame he made for an excellent action hero onscreen.

Predator

Weathers first made his name appearing in films and TV shows such as Good Times, The Six Million Dollar Man, and Starsky & Hutch before breaking through as Apollo Creed in 1976’s Rocky, an unlikely heavyweight champion who offers journeyman Philly boxer Sylvester Stallone a chance at winning his championship belt. Replicating this role three more times before memorably dying during 1984’s Rocky IV after going head-to-head against Soviet behemoth Ivan Drago (Dolph Lundgren).

Weathers was well known for his comedic skills, appearing alongside Adam Sandler on Happy Gilmore as Chubbs before going on to appear as himself in Arrested Development where he served as acting coach to Tobias Funke (David Cross). Additionally, Weathers voiced Combat Carl in Toy Story 4 and appeared in various network procedurals such as Colony, Chicago Fire and Magnum PI – most recently portraying High Magistrate Greef Karga across all three seasons of Disney+’s The Mandalorian.

Happy Gilmore

Carl Weathers first rose to fame after playing Apollo Creed, Sylvester Stallone’s eventual opponent and eventual friend in three Rocky sequels, and appearing in three short-lived TV series including Dick Wolf’s Street Justice and Chicago Fire. Additionally he has appeared in numerous other movies and shows over time.

Weathers’ first major roles came alongside Jesse Ventura and Arnold Schwarzenegger in 1987’s Predator, and in 1988’s Action Jackson (both nods to nouveau blaxploitation films). But Weathers could also make light of his tough-guy persona with some humorous comedy–in Arrested Development episodes where he played himself as an acting coach with cheaper fees! Weathers also voiced Combat Carl in Toy Story franchise films and was survived by two sons.

Arrested Development

Weathers stood out among an era of muscular action stars as an actor with equal brains to brawn. He appeared in various movies such as Adam Sandler’s sports comedy Happy Gilmore and was nominated for an Emmy award in 2021 for his portrayal of Greef Karga on Disney+ series The Mandalorian.

Weathers’ first notable role came in 1976’s Rocky, playing Apollo Creed – the heavyweight champion who gives journeyman boxer Rocky Balboa an opportunity at winning his belt – before dying tragically during Dolph Lundgren’s Ivan Drago’s fight in 1985’s rousing Rocky IV. He reprised that role three more times before finally being dispatched in that film by Ivan Drago’s killer Ivan Drago played by Dolph Lundgren.

Weathers was featured as himself on the hit television show Arrested Development as an outrageously-cheap acting coach who constantly tried to defraud Tobias of money. He has also directed episodes for both Law & Order and Magnum P.I.

The Mandalorian

Weathers’ career spans both television series and movies from the ’80s to ’90s, including Force 10 From Navarone, Action Jackson, and Predator. He first made an impactful comedic statement in 1996’s Happy Gilmore as Derick “Chubbs” Peterson; later appearing recurring roles on shows such as Psych, ER, The Shield as well as directing episodes for Chicago Justice.

Pedro Pascal, who stars alongside Weathers as Greef Karga on Disney+’s The Mandalorian, paid his late coworker a lasting tribute on Instagram by writing “Words fail – Carl Weathers is truly legendary – Rest in peace!” (UPDATE: Giancarlo Esposito from Moff Gideon is also paying their respects).