Warner Bros. has confirmed that it will be releasing four Rocky films in 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray next year, with Rocky (1976), Rocky II (1979), Rocky III (1982), and Rocky IV (1985) available to purchase in the high-def format beginning February 2023, according to press materials shared by Blu-ray.com.
“Rocky Balboa (Sylvester Stallone), a small-time boxer from working-class Philadelphia, is arbitrarily chosen to take on the reigning world heavyweight champion, Apollo Creed (Carl Weathers), when the undefeated fighter’s scheduled opponent is injured,” reads Warner Bros.’ description for the classic film. “While training with feisty former bantamweight contender Mickey Goldmill (Burgess Meredith), Rocky tentatively begins a relationship with Adrian (Talia Shire), the wallflower sister of his meat-packer pal Paulie (Burt Young).”
Rocky V (1990) and Rocky Balboa (2006), the sixth and final mainline installment of the franchise that saw Sylvester Stallone returning to direct, write, and star in, are absent from the collection, but some are speculating that Warner Bros. will release those films later down the line as part of a box set to get fans to double dip.
The 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray versions of the first four Rocky films will come in a black case and feature photos referencing key moments from their respective features, according to the official product shots that were shared by Warner Bros.
It’s unclear whether Rocky vs. Drago: The Ultimate Director’s Cut, a revised version of Rocky IV that was released in November 2021 with major edits from Stallone (e.g., Sico, the robot butler, being cut entirely), will be included on the Rocky IV 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray.
Another classic that’s getting the high-def treatment is Face/Off, whose 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray release was announced by Kino Lorber last week, expected to arrive on the market early next year with a new 4K restoration and Dolby Vision HDR.
“Obsessed with bringing terrorist Castor Troy (Nicolas Cage) to justice, FBI agent Sean Archer (John Travolta) tracks down Troy, who has boarded a plane in Los Angeles,” reads a description for the 1997 film directed by John Woo. “After the plane crashes and Troy is severely injured, possibly dead, Archer undergoes surgery to remove his face and replace it with Troy’s. As Archer tries to use his disguise to elicit information about a bomb from Troy’s brother, Troy awakes from a coma and forces the doctor who performed the surgery to give him Archer’s face.”
A sequel to Face/Off is being developed by Adam Wingard (The Guest, Godzilla vs. Kong), but Nicholas Cage hasn’t joined the project yet, according to an interview with the director that Empire shared in July 2022.
Some other 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray announcements/updates from this month include:
- Station Eleven
- Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit
- Dragonslayer
- The Texas Chainsaw Massacre
- Strange World
- Swamp Thing
December 2022’s 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray releases include Pulp Fiction, 48 Hours, Amsterdam, Adaptation, Highlander, Carrie, and Halloween Ends, a finale to the new trilogy that reached shelves earlier this week.