More names have been added to star in the Peacock’s limited-series “Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist”. The Atlanta-based film will follow the hustler and cop at the center of the infamous heist that occurred after Muhammad Ali’s defeat of Quarry. The series is already set to star Samuel L. Jackson, Terrence Howard, Taraji P. Henson, Dexter Darden, and Kevin Hart. Now, more famous faces have been added to the lineup, including Don Cheadle, Clifton Powell, Chloe Bailey, Lori Harvey, and more.
Melvin Gregg, Artrece Johnson, and Jalyn Hall are also among the lineup on the Will Packer production that’s set to kick off next week, Deadline reports.
It had been four years since Ali hit the ring after he was banned from boxing for not enlisting in the military. His 1970 comeback match against Quarry occurred at the City Auditorium in Atlanta, where hundreds gathered after the fight for a soiree. It was there that they were all robbed at gunpoint in what became one of the largest armed robberies in American history.
Cheadle will play Detective JD Hudson, one of Atlanta’s first Black detectives who gets assigned to Ali’s security and to investigate the robbery. Jackson will play Frank Moten, according to IMDB. Howard takes on the role of Richard “Cadillac” Wheeler, a gangster and associate of the Council of 12. Darden will play Muhammad Ali, while Henson takes on the role of Vivian Thomas, a savvy businesswoman and mistress to Hart’s Chicken Man, an eager street hustler looking to level up.
The limited series reunites Howard with Craig Brewer, who will direct and executive produce the first two episodes of the series. Howard will also work with Henson for the first time since their hit Lee Daniels series Empire. The pair also worked together in Hustle & Flow.
Source: Black Enterprise, Deadline