Sylvester Stallone is hanging up his gloves

Sylvester Stallone is tapping out.

The actor on Wednesday suggested he is retiring his most famous character, Rocky Balboa, and will not reprise the role after Creed II, which is currently playing in theaters. He made the announcement in an Instagram video taken from the set of the new film, calling it the "ultimate privilege" to play the character. "Though it breaks my heart, sadly all things must pass...and end," he said. Stallone in the video also says that Creed II is "probably my last rodeo," and he tells actor Michael B. Jordan, who leads the Creed franchise, that he must now "carry the mantle."

"I couldn't be happier as I step back because my story has been told," he says. "The most wonderful thing of all is that Rocky will never die because he lives on in you."

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Stallone first played Rocky Balboa more than four decades ago in the 1976 film Rocky, which spawned five sequels released from 1979 through 2006. In 2015, the series was revived in the form of a spin-off, Creed, which focuses on the son of Apollo Creed, who Rocky fights in the original movie. Its sequel, Creed II, opened on Nov. 21 and achieved the best Thanksgiving opening weekend ever for a live-action film. Stallone plays Rocky in both movies.

While Stallone may be saying farewell to Rocky, that doesn't mean he has no iconic characters left to reprise on screen, as a fifth Rambo movie titled Last Blood is currently in the works. Watch Stallone's goodbye video below. Brendan Morrow