The following contains spoilers for Samaritan, now available on Prime Video.

It's safe to say, as extensive as his filmography is, Sylvester Stallone's most iconic figure in cinema has been Rocky Balboa. Sure, one can argue for John Rambo, but that character doesn't have the staying power, as seen with the Rocky movies, which have now turned into a Creed franchise and a budding Ivan Drago spinoff. Simply put, fans love the underdog story behind the Rocky character.

Interestingly, Stallone channeled the boxer a bit in his latest sci-fi flick, Samaritan, which had him diving deeper into the comic book realm than his time as Judge Dredd or Marvel's Starhawk. And as seen with one nostalgic montage, Samaritan actually had the chance to give a different spin on Rocky by making him a full-fledged superhero. However, it wasted that potential.

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Stallone stars in Samaritan, wearing a hoody and looking ready for a fight

In Samaritan, Stallone's Joe befriended young Sam (Jason Walton), a kid in Granite City who snuffed out Joe was like Superman. Joe saved him from some thugs, and he'd realize the man was indestructible, believing Joe to be Samaritan -- a hero from 25 years ago who went into retirement. And since Sam didn't have a dad, he clung to the mythology of Samaritan, wanting Joe to train him to deal with bullies.

It led to a rooftop sequence where they shadow-boxed a bit, playing on the 16-year-old Walton actually being a boxer in real life. But rather than diving into the athleticism and having Joe show Sam it's about discipline and not just being a brawler, Samaritan had Sam try to sucker punch Joe. Sam sprained his hand hitting his new friend, with Joe then advising him to flee after he did that to enemies -- something he'd do later on.

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However, while these moments were funny, they'd have been more nuanced and multidimensional had Joe trained Sam for a bit about combat. They could have dissected how Sam stopped boxing after his father disappeared, connecting to sport and how it helps heal trauma. That same issue got addressed, after all, with Rocky's son, Robert, and Adonis (Apollo's son). But in Joe's case, he'd teach the kid about survival in a city filled with anarchy and murder, not just how to survive in the ring.

And seeing Joe with a distinct fighting style and a protégé wouldn't have just nodded to Rocky -- it would have made them more dynamic for when they had to face the villain, Cyrus, who took up the Nemesis mantle. That way, Joe would have gotten something more memorable with Sam, connecting over a shared passion while they both healed demons of old. And in the process, fans would have seen what Rocky with powers could have been like while still having Joe utilizing other tools when tossing around and smashing Cyrus' gang up to save the city.

See how Joe could have made Rocky a superhero in Samaritan, now available on Prime Video.