| “ | I will break you tomorrow. | „ |
| ~ Viktor to Adonis. |
Viktor Drago (Russian: Виктор Драго) is the secondary antagonist of the 2018 sports drama film Creed II and a supporting character in its 2023 sequel Creed III.
He is a young Russian-born Ukrainian boxer who is the son of Ivan Drago and Ludmilla Drago. He becomes a challenger for the World Heavyweight Championship and the primary opponent of Adonis Creed, the son of Apollo Creed, who Ivan killed during a bout in the ring years before. Despite being Adonis's competitor, Viktor never held a personal grudge against him, and only agreed to fight him in order to impress his father, who was determined to restore glory to their family name.
After Creed defeats Drago in Moscow, Drago embraces his former rival, and the two become friends, later helping Creed train against his next opponent, Damian Anderson.
He was portrayed by real-life German-Romanian boxer Florian Munteanu, who also played Razor Fist in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings.
Biography[]
Past[]
Viktor was born in 1990 to Ivan and Ludmilla, just as the Soviet Union was dissolved a year later. However, Ludmilla divorced Ivan and abandoned him and Viktor, as Ivan had been disgraced for killing Apollo Creed in the ring and being defeated by Rocky Balboa back in 1985. As such, Ivan raised Viktor to become a fierce boxer in the poor streets of Ukraine. Ludmilla's action also caused Viktor to develop a seething hatred towards her for abandoning him when he needed her the most.
Creed II[]
During the film's events, upon hearing that Apollo's son Adonis has won the World Heavyweight Championship (with the help of an elderly Rocky), Ivan decided that it would be time for himself and Viktor to take action. As such, Viktor publicly challenges Adonis to a fight, swearing to break him and take the title for himself to avenge his father's defeat. Of course, Rocky refuses to train Adonis for the fight as he fears that Adonis will suffer Apollo's fate, but Adonis accepts the fight as he intends to avenge Apollo's death.
During the first match, Viktor easily pounded off Adonis with all his strength, as Adonis had been suffering from recent developments in his life. This allowed Viktor to finally punch Adonis down on the floor, but this only disqualified him for hitting him while he was down, resulting in Adonis remaining as the current holder of the title. However, Viktor's beating left Adonis extremely shattered, prompting Adonis' stepmother, Mary Anne, to convince Rocky to go back and help Adonis out.
Because of the disqualification, a rematch was set up between Viktor and Adonis, though Viktor and Ivan found themselves in good graces with the Russian delegates due to Viktor's efforts. However, the arrival of Ludmilla drives Viktor away in disgust as he is furious at his mother for abandoning him, even berating Ivan for trying to earn back the respect of the people who abandoned him. To ensure that Viktor wins, Ivan puts Viktor through a series of suffering physical tests to build up more of his strength. However, Rocky gives Adonis special training that requires equal blows, allowing him to regain his confidence and strength.
The rematch is considerably more balanced, as a more controlled and focused Adonis exchanges equal blows with Viktor. Due to Viktor's past matches never going past the fourth round, he begins to tire in the later rounds which Adonis takes advantage of. While Viktor is ahead in point, Adonis uses his stamina to his advantage. In the 10th round, Adonis unleashes on an exhausted Viktor, leading to the latter being knocked down twice and the tide shifting in Adonis's favor. When Ludmilla and several of Viktor's supporters depart from the scene after Viktor's second knockdown, Viktor is left emotionally demoralized, losing his will to fight and defend himself. Adonis continues his assault on Viktor. Upon witnessing this and realizing that Viktor will suffer Apollo's fate, Ivan throws in the towel to spare Viktor from further pain, conceding defeat to Adonis. Viktor is left distraught over his loss, but Ivan comforts him by saying that it is okay to lose and that he is still proud of him, implying that his relationship with Viktor is more critical than his former glory.
Viktor returns to Ukraine with his father, having recuperated from his pain as they continue training together; even as Adonis pays a visit to Apollo's grave, he credits both Dragos with giving him the opportunity to prove himself to the world and create his own legacy.
Creed III[]
After reconciling with Adonis, Viktor reforms his villainy and rivalry against his former opponent, and the two come to cordial terms. When Dame Anderson organizes an assault on Drago, forcing him to bow out of his bout with reigning heavyweight champion Felix Chavez and allowing Dame to rob the title, Drago takes it upon himself to train Creed to reclaim the title from Dame.
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- In a deleted scene following the aftermath of the rematch, Adonis paid a visit to a moping Viktor in the locker room, where he expressed his sympathy towards Viktor over his loss as he too was disgusted by Ludmilla's departure, which Viktor silently acknowledged as he sees now that Adonis truly understands his plight. Even Drago, who witnessed this, nodded to Rocky for training Adonis to become a better fighter, hinting at remorse for killing Apollo.
- The exact reason for the removal of this scene remains unclear. Still, it appears that a similar scene was reimagined and incorporated into Damian Anderson's redemption arc at the end of Creed II's sequel Creed III, directed by Michael B. Jordan, the actor of Adonis Creed.
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