Moonlight star Trevante Rhodes will star in the upcoming series Iron Mike, which seeks to tackles the rocky and complicated life of notorious boxer Mike Tyson. According to Collider, the biopic series “aims to go beyond the hype, headlines and media frenzy to examine a story that deals with racism, misogyny, wealth divide and the impact of generational trauma in America told through the lens of this boxing legend.”
Margot Robbie will executive produce Iron Mike with I, Tonya director Craig Gillespie. Iron Mike will begin production later this year through 20th Television. Rhodes most recently starred in the Netflix film Birdbox and Hulu’s The United States Vs. Billie Holiday.
Controversy and tragedy defines Mike Tyson’s life and career. His early life was marked by the loss of his mother at age sixteen and time in and out of police custody, both contributing to his path to boxing. Tyson was convicted of rape in 1992 and sentenced to six years in prison, where he converted to Islam. After his release on parole less than 3 years later, he returned to boxing. Disgrace in the boxing ring came when he was disqualified after biting Evander Holyfield’s ear off in 1997. He declared bankruptcy in 2003 and officially retired from boxing in 2006. Over the years he’s suffered from a myriad of substance abuse issues, racking up multiple DUIs. Despite all of this, he’s considered one of the best heavyweight boxers of all time.
Tyson will have no role in the production of the series, calling it “tone deaf” following the intial announcement in February. He also said that an authorized series version of his life will be in production soon, starring Jamie Foxx.
13 Comments
I’m not sure there needs to be another Mike Tyson biopic after the 90’s version that starred Michael Jai White. Considering it was a tv movie, it was pretty decent.
Paul Winfield was awesome as Don King (as was Ving Rhames in the actual Don King movie)! And George C. Scott as Cus D’Amato! What a cast!
2 hours of shirtless Trevante Rhodes, but at what cost?
The downside is that it’s a boxing picture.
Such a trooper. I read that he’s going to get his face tattooed too.
Multiple Mike Tyson hagiographies are being released IN 2021!… and yet people still think the idea of cancel culture is real. lol
Tyson gets to pop up in a lot of movies and commercials as a good guy…and he’s a convicted rapist…pretty weird.
And Mark Wahlberg literally committed violent hate crimes for which the police reports are on the internet. It seems like who gets cancelled it just another viral trend.
Yep, pretty weird also that his rape conviction is tossed off here as one of the many tragedies and misfortunes that he has faced in his life.
I think the difference is that he did actual hard time for his crime. In 2016 it’s all but guaranteed that if you don’t have a Cosby or Weinstein-sized tidal wave of accusations coming at you all at once, you’re not getting convicted of sexual assault if you’re a celebrity. Look at Kevin Spacey or Woody Allen, just happily living their lives. Tyson, on the other hand, did a real prison sentence in a real prison. Maybe not as long as he should have, but at least there was real punishment.It’s tough, because I think there should be harder sentences for crimes of this nature, but I also believe that when you’ve served your sentence you shouldn’t be condemned for it for the rest of your life.
2016? Woody Allen was investigated and cleared twice (because, among other reasons, they found it credible that Mia Farrow coached the kids, which her son Moses has verified) in almost the same year as Tyson’s conviction. Whether you think Allen should have been cleared or not, it’s not the same thing as someone whose case was just dropped like Spacey.In any case, there is a big difference between “eternally condemned” and “celebrated.” Tyson paid his debt to society, but he’s still a rapist. He shouldn’t be prevented from holding ordinary jobs, but that doesn’t mean it’s normal for him to be a celebrity spokesperson.
glad to see they’re approaching this with some actual backbone (also casting someone age appropriate)and yet, once again i am disappointed that hollywood has no idea how to do something that isn’t the same thing at the same time. gonna be so many projects in the next few years about the same few things. feels like more than usual.
I’m much more interested in a movie version of Mike Tyson’s Punch Out.