Jamie Foxx is delving back into biopic territory. An untitled Mike Tyson biographical film is the works with Jamie Foxx attached to portray to the legendary boxer and Martin Scorsese being sought out to direct. The biopic has found itself back in headlines after Jamie Foxx gave an interview with radio station Hot 97, detailing the opening scene of the film.
The film has been in pre-production for many years now. In 2014, Tyson sat down with IGN and talked about the film. The problem at the time was Jamie Foxx’s age. Foxx is 49 years old, a huge matter when it comes to portraying a young Tyson. Fortunately, with the advances in technology, that problem is easily solved.
Films such as The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, by David Fincher, more recently Star Wars: Rogue One, have revolutionized performance capture technology. This technology requires an actor to wear either hundreds of reflectors, or, in Benjamin Button’s case, glow in the dark powder registered by a range of cameras. MOVA, as the technology is called, was developed visual effects company Digital Domain. The film is about a young boy who was born old and ages backwards in time. Fincher used MOVA to visually recreate Brad Pitt, who played the eponymous character, as an old man/young boy hybrid. Rogue One’s visual effects were done by Industrial Light and Magic, a company owned by Lucasfilm and created by George Lucas. Rogue One the character of Grand Moff Tarkin back to life, even though his original actor (legend Peter Cushing) had died twenty-two years before. Both films received Academy Award nominations for Best Visual Effects, with Benjamin Button winning.
With performance capture technology reaching new heights, creating a young Mike Tyson using the performance of Jamie Foxx is well in the realm of possibility. Foxx’s big break came when he was casted in Oliver Stone’s Any Given Sunday alongside heavy hitter Al Pacino. He was nominated for Best Supporting Actor at the Oscar’s for his role as a taxi driver in Michael Mann’s Collateral. He won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his portrayal of blind musician Ray Charles in the 2004 biopic Ray. He’s been in critically lauded films like Jarhead, this year’s Baby Driver, and Django Unchained.
Tyson’s life would make for an engrossing film. As with other sports films, it’ll bring the intensity of athleticism and the violence and tension of a boxing match. Tyson holds the record as the youngest boxer to win a heavyweight title. Tyson became a lineal heavyweight champion after defeating Michael Spinks in 1988 while holding the WBC, WBa and IBF titles, being the first heavyweight boxer to do so. Tyson’s life is also a controversial one. From claims of spousal abuse, to rape (of which he was convicted and served three years in prison for), to his notorious match against Evander Holyfield.
If Hollywood heavyweight Martin Scorsese officially signs on to direct, it’ll be his second foray into boxing territory. Scorsese directed Robert De Niro in Raging Bull, a biopic about the life of boxing legend Jake LaMotta, who died earlier today.
The film is still in early pre-production and has no set release date.
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