There is little doubt that Creed III has been a huge hit over the weekend as it dominated the box office. Interestingly, it might have a lot to do with the film's obvious anime inspiration. One of the coolest things about the sequel has been Michael B. Jordan's fighting gear which was inspired by the classic anime Akira.
In Creed III, Michael B. Jordan's Adonis Creed donned cool red leather shorts for his fight against childhood friend Damian Anderson. If the shorts looked somehow familiar, that's because it's designed that way. Designer and concept artist Raphael Phillips confirmed that the film's costume designer Lizz Wolf had contacted him to work on the special gear.
Phillips confirmed that he took inspiration from Shotaro Kaneda's motorcycle suit in the 1988 anime film Akira. Needless to say, it was an awesome nod to the beloved animated movie and it's certainly on point with Creed III's anime theme.
The Akira-inspired shorts aren't the only anime inspiration in the film. Michael B. Jordan had previously teased a tribute to Dragon Ball Z.
"Without nerding out too much... You've seen so many fights throughout the Rocky and Creed franchise, and I really wanted to put my spin on it, you know?" Jordan said. "How to make these fights different, and you know, from Hajime no Ippo, to Megalo Box, to Naruto, to My Hero Academia, all of those different anime that I watched growing up, there's an inherent spirit to them in how they fight..."
"I would say from the Dragon Ball Z universe, there's a punch... [in] me and Damian's fight, where there's a Dragon Ball Z punch that's in there," Jordan said.
Creed 3 also stars Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania's Jonathan Majors, Thor: Love and Thunder actor Tessa Thompson and Florian Munteanu, who played Razor Fist in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings. Stallone, who appeared in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, serves as a producer of the sequel. The film will premiere on March 3, 2023.
Related: Creed 3 Star Michael B. Jordan Teases Epic Dragon Ball Z Punch in Upcoming Sequel
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