Who wrote and directed Rocky IV?

Sylvester Stallone wrote and directed Rocky IV.

Rocky IV, released in 1985, gave Stallone complete authorship of the film's screenplay and direction while he also played Rocky Balboa. The story sends Rocky into a Cold War showdown with Ivan Drago, the Soviet boxer played by Dolph Lundgren, after Apollo Creed's tragic exhibition bout.

The answer is sometimes confused with Irwin Winkler, who was a producer, or John G. Avildsen, who directed the original Rocky and later returned for Rocky V. Bill Conti composed the music for Rocky IV's earlier franchise entries, but he was not the film's writer or director; Vince DiCola composed Rocky IV's score.

Rocky IV became one of the series' most commercially successful installments. Its production emphasized the political symbolism of an American fighter facing a Soviet champion, while its training sequences, soundtrack, and final speech made it one of the franchise's defining cultural moments.