Interview: Tracy Letts Discusses His Scene Stealing Turn in ‘I Play Rocky’

I get such a kick out of Tracy Letts. The actor, playwright, and screenwriter has a distinct personality that shows up in all of his work. Whether it’s his tender turn in Lady Bird, his authoritative turns in things like Ford v Ferrari, A House of Dynamite, Indignation, and The Post, or basically anything else he’s done, it’s nearly impossible not to enjoy him. With I Play Rocky, he’s now added a scene-stealing comedic turn. Back when I saw the movie at the Toronto International Film Festival, I was delighted by Letts playing the fictional studio head Sandy Maddox. Recently, I spent some time on Zoom with Letts talking about the flick, the original Rocky, and much more. Today, our discussion comes your way.

In my review of the film from TIFF (here), I wrote about Letts and the cast like so:

Anthony Ippolito is an uncanny Sylvester Stallone, channeling Sly in a way that never feels like an impression. This is soulful and funny work, from beginning to end. Ippolito is going to be a star, sure, but he might also end up an Oscar nominee for this one, he’s that good. Jay Duplass and Tracy Letts steal their scenes in very amusing supporting roles, while P.J. Byrne and Toby Kebbell also have their share of good scenes.

Below, you can see my chat with Letts. After some moaning about the Mets, we get into why he wanted to take this job, what appealed to him about I Play Rocky, and the original film. Plus, given he’s a huge DVD collector, we also talk about physical media a bit. Letts is a great storyteller, obviously proud of the movie and his role in it, as well as just easy to talk to, so we had a good time here. I Play Rocky is about to begin its theatrical run and is a true delight, so don’t you dare miss this flick.

Here now is my interview with I Play Rocky co-star Tracy Letts. Enjoy:

I Play Rocky opens in limited release on November 6th, with the wide release coming on November 20th!