Over the past few weeks, Sylvester Stallone has made no secret of the fact that Ivan Drago would be returning in Creed 2, the sequel to the 2015 sports drama from Ryan Coogler that served as a successor to the Rocky franchise. That film was much better than it had any right to be, and it even managed to snag an Oscar nomination for Stallone’s portrayal of the Italian Stallion himself, Rocky Balboa.

RELATED: Ivan Drago Confirmed For Creed 2

For this sequel, it seemed natural that the next obstacle could come in the form of Ivan Drago. For those who aren’t incredibly versed in the Rocky mythology, in Rocky IV, the Russian boxer killed Apollo Creed — Adonis Creed’s father — in the ring, which led to his eventual showdown with Rocky. Given that Drago is responsible for Adonis’ father’s death, it’s a great next step for this franchise to take in addressing that.

Speaking with TMZ, Stallone teased the return of Drago, saying:

“It wouldn’t be a party without Drago would it? I’m gonna punch him. You know I gotta hit Drago once.”

Of course, this leaves us with a few different questions, such as HOW Drago will be involved. Are we supposed to expect that the man is still in the ring? Will he be a trainer for the actual rival in the film, or will he be the father of Adonis’ opponent? We’re leaning towards the latter of the three, as evidenced by the caption “Sins of the Father” that Stallone put in the first Drago reveal on Instagram.

Another question we have, thanks to Stallone’s statement, is whether or not Rocky will indeed get a chance to slug Drago yet again. We’d also like to see Creed 2 as a chance to humanize Drago. Rocky IV was one that came out during the Cold War, and as such, there wasn’t a lot of humanity in actor Dolph Lundgren’s portrayal. With decades gone by, perhaps we’ll get to delve more into the psyche of the Russian boxer.

Are you excited to see Lundgren return as Drago? Let us know down below!

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SOURCE: TMZ