Having already played the corner man to one of the greatest boxers of all-time, Jamie Foxx looks ready to get back in the ring to portray one of the most recognizable boxers and sports figures of this generation. Sources tell Variety that Foxx is attached to play Mike Tyson in an untitled biopic that Terence Winter (The Wolf of Wall Street) is set to pen. Rick Yorn, who is Foxx’s manager, is shepherding the project and will produce.
Though it’s unknown exactly which parts of Tyson’s life Winter will focus on, he has plenty of material to cover over the past 30 years. HBO tackled the story before with the 1995 pic Tyson starring Michael Jai White, but no one has tried to adapt his story as a feature film, though boxing is a popular sport for films.
"Me and Jamie Foxx are in discussion, and we gonna do it," Tyson told the Mirror. "Within a year to 18 months, we're going to do the Mike Tyson story and he's going to portray me, and now they have this new animation; because you know Jamie's pretty much my age so he can't portray me but they have this new system." Tyson - who became the youngest ever world heavyweight champ at the age of 20 - is now 48, while Foxx is 46.
Jamie Foxx to Play Mike Tyson in New Untitled Biopic; Terence Winter to Pen Script
No doubt Jamie Foxx would nail the character, he's being impression for years...but what the physical transformation is what I'd be iffy about. He's buff, but not Prime Mike Tyson buff, hell Will Smith had to bulk the fuck up for Ali and Ali wasn't as muscular as Tyson was. If this is possible, we should start testing actors for PEDs.
