George Foreman and Forest Whitaker Talk Boxing Biopic 'Big George Foreman'
Moviefone speaks with George Foreman and Forest Whitaker about 'Big George Foreman.' "People know me as a champion, but few knew that I started without hope," Foreman said.
‘Big George Foreman: The Miraculous Story of the Once and Future Heavyweight Champion of the World,’ the new biopic that chronicles the life of boxer George Foreman, opens in theaters on April 28th and was directed by George Tillman Jr. (‘The Hate U Give’).
Is 'Big George Foreman' Based on a true story and what is the plot of the movie?
Yes! 'Big George Foreman' is based on the true story of boxing legend George Foreman who rose from poverty to win an Olympic gold medal and eventually the Heavy Weight Championship of the World, twice! The film chronicles his rise to fame, his devastating loss to Muhammad Ali, his decision to leave boxing to become a Baptist preacher, and his return to the ring at age 46 to win back his title and become the oldest Heavy Weight Champion in history.
Big George Foreman
Who’s in the cast of ‘Big George Foreman?’
‘Big George Foreman’ stars Khris Davis (‘Judas and the Black Messiah’) as George Foreman, Jasmine Mathews (‘The Tomorrow War’) as Mary Jones, John Magaro (’The Big Short’) as Desmond, Lawrence Gilliard Jr. (‘One Night in Miami’) as Archie Moore, Sonja Sohn (‘Bringing Out the Dead’) as Nancy Foreman, Sam Trammell (‘The Fault in Our Stars’) as Rev. Virdell Stokes, Sullivan Jones (’18 ½’) as Muhammad Ali, and Oscar-winner Forest Whitaker (‘The Last King of Scotland’) as Doc Broadus.
Moviefone recently had the pleasure of speaking with legendary boxer George Foreman and Oscar-winning actor Forest Whitaker about their work on ‘Big George Foreman: The Miraculous Story of the Once and Future Heavyweight Champion of the World,’ bringing Foreman’s story to the big screen, his relationship with trainer and mentor Doc Broadus, Whitaker’s approach to playing him, and what Foreman hopes audiences take away from the film.
Boxing legend George Foreman, the subject of 'Big George Foreman: The Miraculous Story of the Once and Future Heavyweight Champion of the World.'
You can read the full interview below or click on the video player above to watch our interviews with Foreman, Whitaker, Kris Davis and director George Tillman Jr.
Moviefone: To begin with, Mr. Foreman, what has this experience been like for you to have your life’s story translated to the big screen?
George Foreman: You go about your whole life wearing dog glasses, building big fence around your home, you got your privacy, and you go out in your car with dark windows. Then all of a sudden you have to reveal your life. That hasn't been easy, but once I saw the movie, I was happy because it was a story that reveals hope. A lot of us just didn't have hope like I did in the beginning, but the movie tells a story of hope.
MF: Are there one or two aspects of your life that are personally important for you to have included in this movie, and if so, what were they?
GF: I didn't really see the most important parts until I really saw it on screen and what you can do with a picture. That young boy looking into these houses that my mom would move into, nothing but old refrigerators and stoves, I didn't have any hope that it would get better. I really didn't think about success and I keep reliving that moment, a boy without hope, and I cried when I saw it in the movie. It touched my heart to know now that anybody can have hope.
(L to R) Khris Davis and Forest Whitaker stars in 'Big George Foreman: The Miraculous Story of the Once and Future Heavy Weight Champion of the World.' Photo: Alan Markfield. Copyright: © 2021 CTMG, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
MF: Can you talk about your friendship with Doc Broadus and what did you think of Forest Whitaker’s performance?
GF: Forest Whitaker brought out probably the most interesting and really, if there was going to be a movie star in the movie, it was Doc Broadus in my life. He brought Doc Broadus alive for me and you realize that was someone I had met who never gave up on me. This man believed in me from the day I met him. I was about 16 or 17 years old, and then him there with me carrying my bucket when I was 45 years old to become champion of the world. He never doubted me. What a journey. It was ironic that the guy who played Doc Broadus was a real movie star. Doc Broadus was a real star of my life.
MF: Mr. Whitaker, how aware of Doc Broadus' role in George Foreman's story were you before making this movie, and what did you learn about him that really helped you play the role?
Forest Whitaker: I really wasn't aware. At that time when I was watching these fights as a kid, I didn't really know the coaches or the trainers. I think that other than Angelo Dundee and a few people, that's the way it was for most trainers. You don't really know the names of the boxing trainers, but I learned a lot while working on this film, and I learned a lot about Doc Broadus and his relationship with George, and that was good.
Forest Whitaker stars in 'Big George Foreman: The Miraculous Story of the Once and Future Heavyweight Champion of the World.'
MF: How would you describe their relationship? He was really a mentor to him, correct?
FW: Yeah. I mean, he's a coach, but he's a mentor. He's trying to guide him in the right direction. I mean, he's instrumental. He starts the Job Corps Boxing Association there, and that's what George got into. That's the beginning of his boxing career, and this man carried him all the way through all the ups and downs, because there were downs as well during that period of time, and he was able to guide him to the championship.
MF: What was your experience like working with Khris Davis and building the relationship between these two characters on screen?
FW: I mean, Khris, he's a really talented actor, and he was totally committed to the embodiment of the character, the way he moved and talked and behaved, and then was committing himself to so much physical change with all the weight gain and stuff. So for us, it was just about a matter of us trusting each other in the scenes and trying to make sure that we lived in the truth of what we both found out. He did a great job.
Khris Davis stars as George Foreman in 'Big George Foreman: The Miraculous Story of the Once and Future Heavy Weight Champion of the World.' Photo: Alan Markfield
Copyright: © 2021 CTMG, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
MF: Mr. Foreman, did you have any words of advice for Khris Davis and what did you think of his performance as you in the film?
GF: What a wonderful actor. I didn't want just a celebrity to play George Foreman or to imitate George Foreman. I needed an actor. This guy is a great actor, and he brought George Foreman to the screen. People ask me, "Who is the real George Foreman?" I tell them, "Khris Davis." He brought it alive and I sat with him for just a couple of moments, looked him in the eye and he tried to turn his head, and I said, "No, look me in the eye. Can you see me?" He said, "Yes, I can see you." I said, "That's when I was winning the ring. That's the person I was." So those visits really made him bring out George Foreman.
MF: Mr. Whitaker, what was your experience like working with filmmaker George Tillman Jr.?
FW: George Tillman was really clear and visionary about it all. I mean, he had been working on the film for quite a while, and in fact it was going to go, and then it didn't go, and then it went again later. But I think he was key to the temperament of the movie and it being such an inspiring empowerment story.
(L to R) Khris Davis and director, George Tillman on the set of 'Big George Foreman: The Miraculous Story of the Once and Future Heavy Weight Champion of the World.'
Photo: Kyle Kaplan. Copyright: © 2023 CTMG, Inc. All Rights.
MF: Have you had any time to spend with Mr. Foreman over the years or during the process of making this film and what do you respect most about him as a boxer and a human being?
FW: I got a chance to meet him briefly a couple of times, but I didn't get a chance to get to know him that deeply like that. All I could say is that he was kind of a childhood hero and he has a quiet confidence that's pretty impressive, his aura and his energy.
MF: Finally, Mr. Foreman, what do you hope audiences take away from seeing this movie that maybe they didn't previously know about the life and career of George Foreman?
GF: So many people know me as a champion of the world, the grill salesman, but few knew that I had started without hope. Hope didn't exist. The word success didn't exist. A lot of us today don't realize there are a lot of people without hope. You can pick it up anytime you want and you can start using the word potential and success with your name too. That's what they'll get out of that movie. There's potential in all of us.
Khris Davis stars as George Foreman in 'Big George Foreman: The Miraculous Story of the Once and Future Heavy Weight Champion of the World.' Photo: Alan Markfield
Copyright: © 2021 CTMG, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Other Movies Similar to ‘Big George Foreman: The Miraculous Story of the Once and Future Heavyweight Champion of the World:’
- ‘Rocky' (1976)
- ‘Rocky II' (1979)
- 'Raging Bull' (1980)
- 'Rocky III' (1982)
- ‘Rocky IV' (1985)
- 'Rocky V' (1990)
- 'When We Were Kings' (1996)
- 'The Boxer' (1997)
- 'Ali' (2001)
- 'Million Dollar Baby' (2005)
- 'Cinderella Man' (2005)
- 'Rocky Balboa' (2006)
- 'The Fighter' (2010)
- 'Real Steel' (2011)
- 'Southpaw' (2015)
- 'Creed' (2015)
- 'Creed II' (2018)
- 'Creed III' (2023)
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'Big George Foreman: The Miraculous Story of the Once and Future Heavyweight Champion of the World' is produced by Mandalay Pictures, Affirm Films, Sony Pictures, and State Street Pictures, and is scheduled for release on April 28th.
