The Rocky movies starring Sylvester Stallone have all been big hits. But do you remember the pair of non-human characters from the first installment who were pivotal to the story?

Yes – we’re talking about the two turtles Cuff and Link!

Stallone
YouTube

The duo made their first appearance in the 1976 hit film and since then, they have been enjoying their lives in the company of the legendary action star. Stallone adopted them right after the filming of Rocky came to an end.

Cuff and Link were once just two tiny turtles inside a fishbowl who Rocky Balboa bought in the film. Who would have thought that their fictional lives onscreen would become their real life?
We’d say it’s destiny.

stallone
Maxim

In the movie, Rocky would always stop by J&M Tropical Fish pet store to buy food and other necessities for Cuff and Link. It was there where his blossoming romance with Adrian Pennino (played by Talia Shire), who worked at the shop, would start.

stallone
Imgur

The turtles became an excuse for him to visit the shop and for the two to bond. Eventually, they would fall deeply in love with each other – and Rocky’s two aquatic pets are to thank for that.

Decades after, Cuff and Link made another movie appearance in the film Creed II, which was released in 2018.

In the set during filming, Stallone took a selfie along with his two buddies and uploaded it on Instagram.

“In CREED 2 with my original buddies from the first Rocky … CUFF and LINK, now about 44 years old!” he wrote.

stallone
Instagram

Stallone fans responded with enthusiasm to the actor’s post, with most of them sending him praises for keeping the two turtles after all these years.

See Cuff and Link’s appearance in the Rocky film in the video below.

Well, it looks like these two are probably the most famous turtles in the world!