- Moderate
- As with any boxing movie/TV show (and/or franchise), the violence rating is mostly because of blood and injuries due to the sport. Never anything out of purpose. There are some heated moments in this movie out the ring but nothing more than moderately intensely moments.
- Rocky is in a brief boxing match at the start of the film. One man headbutts another, and in retaliation is punched in the face repeatedly until he is knocked out. Some bruises and minor cuts.
- Rocky's boxing match with Apollo Creed is quite long, many punches are thrown, Rocky's nose is broken, many bruises are shown on his face especially his eyes and he is knocked down many times. Apollo Creed is shown with many bruises and cuts as well. The dialog tells us that Rocky intends to punch Creed in the body and mentioned breaking ribs as a possibility to hamper Creed's breathing, and then in the fight, we learn that Rocky did break one of Creed's ribs and we see Creed listing slightly to one side. Rocky wants his eye to be cut due to heavy swelling from Apollo Creed's attack. Benny cuts him with a razor, blood runs down his face.
- Some may feel the scenes in the meat locker to be "gore". The half-carcasses of cattle hang throughout ("sides of beef"), and Rocky angrily punches one. Then gets the idea of using them for training. He uses them in a supplement to punching bags, and gets his fists all bloody. He mentions that he is able to break the ribs in the sides of beef.