MGM has been contemplating a sequel to the Rocky spin-off Creed ever since the movie opened back in November with an impressive $29 million, more than any other previous Rocky installment. However, up until now it has been unclear when that might happen and whether Ryan Coogler would be available to return to the director’s chair. Fortunately, this week we are finally a step closer to getting solid answers to both of those questions. Following up Sylvester Stallone’s Golden Globe win for his performance in Creed, MGM has set a tentative release window for the sequel and it certainly seems like it will preclude Coogler from taking part behind the camera. Hit the jump for more details.

According to Variety, MGM is currently eyeing a November 2017 release date for Creed 2, although it isn’t yet set in stone. That would definitely make it difficult for Ryan Coogler to direct because he has just been confirmed as the director of Marvel’s Black Panther, which hits theatres just three months later on February 16th, 2018. This coincides with a statement Stallone had made last week, implying that they might be forced to have Coogler involved as a producer only: “There’s a diminishing time acceptance of a sequel. Now they are cranking them out in a year.”

As for what the plot might involve, Stallone has mentioned in an interview that Ryan Coogler has an idea to weave together scenes in the past and the present, potentially bringing Carl Weathers back as Apollo Creed. He compared it to The Godfather II, although in this case there is a question of how exactly they might pull that off with the same actors. Coogler himself joked about using CG, although something tells me he may not be entirely joking. Are you looking forward to a Creed sequel? Who would you like to see direct?