Michael B. Jordan to Direct “Creed IV”, Says Producer Irwin Winkler

Winkler revealed that the film is likely to start production in late 2024

Producer Irwin Winkler has confirmed that Creed IV is in the works — and Michael B. Jordan is directing!

In videos posted by Deadline on X (formerly known as Twitter), Winkler, 92, revealed that filming is likely to start in about a year. When asked if Jordan, 36, would be returning to the Rocky franchise as a director, Winkler let the audience in on the secret.

“I’m not supposed to say, but he will be,” the filmmaker said as the crowd let out a burst of laughter.

The announcement came shortly after Winkler confirmed the movie during that same interview, adding that the SAG-AFTRA strike “delayed” the pre-production process. He said he is excited to continue the franchise.

“We think we have a really good story, a really good plot,” he said about the sports-drama.

Related: Michael B. Jordan's 'Creed III' Has Biggest Sports Film Domestic Opening Ever with Historic $58.6M

Jordan made his directorial debut with Creed III, in which he also played the role of Adonis Johnson Creed, son of legendary boxer Apollo Creed (featured in the Rocky films). The movie came out in March 2023, and made history as the biggest domestic opening for a sports film.

It brought in more than $58 million over the first weekend, MGM told The Hollywood Reporter.

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The third movie saw the return of original cast members Jordan, Phylicia Rashad (Mary Anne Creed), Tessa Thompson (Adonis' wife, Bianca) and Wood Harris (Adonis' trainer), but was the first of the franchise to not feature Sylvester Stallone's Rocky Balboa.

"That's a regretful situation because I know what it could have been," Stallone told The Hollywood Reporter in 2022. "It was taken in a direction that is quite different than I would've taken it."

Related: Everything to Know About 'Creed III'

Alluding to creative differences behind the scenes, Stallone, 77, told the outlet, "I'm much more of a sentimentalist. I like my heroes getting beat up, but I just don't want them going into that dark space."

Jordan, on the other hand, previously said his role made him feel more comfortable in his directorial skills as he stepped into uncharted territory.

"I finally got to this place in my career where I really wanted to tell a story, you know, and not just be in front of the camera, not just execute somebody else's vision," he said during a virtual Q&A in October 2022.

"And having a character that I've played twice before, you know it's been seven, eight years living with this guy, so to be able to tell a story of where I believe Adonis is at."

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