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Hulu Won’t Be Knocked Out Of The Ring On Mike Tyson Biopic ‘Iron Mike’ Despite Punches Thrown By Boxer

Peter White
·2-min read

Hulu is standing firm with its Mike Tyson biopic series despite a few jabs from the former world champion boxer.

In February, the streamer revealed it had ordered eight-episode series Iron Mike from I, Tonya screenwriter Steven Rogers and director Craig Gillespie with Margot Robbie exec producing and Mixed-ish’s Karin Gist set as showrunner and exec producer.

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The series is set to explore the wild, tragic and controversial life and career of heavyweight champion Tyson – one of the most polarizing figures in sports culture.

However, a few hours after the announcement, Tyson accused the Disney-owned network of “cultural misappropriation” and said it was “tone-deaf” to announce particularly during Black History Month.

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It turned out that one of Tyson’s issues might have been a rival project that was also in the works, one that he had signed up to be involved in, revealing in March that Jamie Foxx would star in a limited series from Antoine Fuqua and Martin Scorsese. That project didn’t have a broadcaster or streamer attached.

Craig Erwich, who is now President of ABC Entertainment and Hulu Originals after the December shake-up at the company, told Deadline that it is currently in process on the Iron Mike series.

“Biographical pictures are a fan favorite and a staple of the movie and television business and frequently the subjects are not involved. We have a strategy of taking a modern lens and applying it to stories and figures of popular culture of the past,” he told Deadline. “We’ve had a lot of success doing that and I think it reveals interesting things, not just about where we’ve been but where we are so we’re looking forward to continuing the creative conversations behind Iron Mike.”

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