The third film in the “Creed” saga, released this weekend, pays tribute to the Latino history of boxing and highlights the importance of women in a mostly male industry. “It’s important for girls to see women with power,” actress Selenis Leyva tells EFE.
“The writers did a phenomenal job and not only portrayed the world of boxing, but also the personal world of Adonis (the protagonist) and I am fascinated by the idea of teaching that powerful men and powerful women can exist in this field,” Leyva explained. .
Third part of the story starring Michael B. Jordan shows the return of Adonis Johnson Creed to the boxing ring to face not only with an important person in his life, but with regrets from the past that torment him.
The saga began in 2015 taking up the life of iconic boxer “Rocky” –immortalized by Sylvester Stallone in the 1970s and 1980s – this time as the coach of his rival’s son, and later friend, Apollo Creed.
After having been part of the first two films, Stallone left the project and in this latest installment of the story, Jordan took the directing reins for the first time in his career.
“Michael B. Jordan as a director was a dream. He gave you the freedom to give yourself in a very special way,” explained Leyva, who also confessed that the entire cast created an atmosphere of brotherhood and support for the 36-year-old actor throughout filming. years.
The film features intense fight scenes inspired by the aesthetics of Japanese anime such as “Naruto” and “Dragon Ball Z”, but it also shows the underbelly of Adoniswho has lost physical condition since his retirement and lives tense family moments with the illness of a loved one.
LATINO TRIBUTE AND FEMALE STRENGTH
The Cuban-American actress plays Laura, the mother and representative of Félix Chávez, the new heavyweight champion, a character inspired by the Mexican boxer Julio César Chávez.
The references to the international success that the boxers of the Latin American country have had continue with the very small appearance in the film of the current world boxing champion Saúl “El Canelo” Álvarez and his wife, Fernanda Gómez.
“They are paying homage to the Latino community in this world of boxing and it fascinates me because we are a big part of the success of this sport”, says Leyva.
In the film, Félix will have to face Damian, played by Jonathan Mayors, a childhood friend of Adonis who will return to the protagonist’s life reviving painful memories.
But Damian’s dirty games and Adonis’s condescension will make Felix’s mother seek to prevail against the injustices that are coming.
“Laura is not only a Latina mother, is a woman who is making it big in the world of boxing and that’s not something you see every day in this normally very masculine industry,” the “Orange Is the New Black” actress said.
Another of the powerful female characters in the plot is the singer and wife of the boxer, Bianca Creed, played by Tessa Thompson, who faces challenges in her career after the progressive hearing loss she suffers, while her little daughter Amara, whom she plays Mila Davis-Kent begins to develop a taste for boxing.
“I want Latina women and little girls to see these women with power and say, ‘look, we can too, look how they fight and are part of history,’ that’s the most beautiful thing about this movie,” the actress concluded.