Hulu's upcoming limited series "Mike" is the most serious attempt to date at giving Mike Tyson's life and boxing career the cinematic treatment. But Tyson is not too happy about the project.
The boxer took to Twitter this weekend to complain about Hulu producing the unauthorized show without his consent.
"Hulu stole my story," Tyson tweeted. "They're Goliath and I'm David. Heads will roll for this." He later added that "Hulu's model of stealing life rights of celebrities is egregiously greedy."
This isn't the first time that Tyson has complained about the Hulu series. In a previously-deleted Instagram post, he wrote that: "Hulu's announcement to do an unauthorized mini-series of the Tyson story without compensation, although unfortunate, isn't surprising."
It's possible that Tyson's opposition to the series is partially fueled by the fact that it is competing with a separate project that he is developing. Jamie Foxx is set to play the boxer in "Tyson," a limited series directed by Antoine Fuqua and executive produced by Martin Scorsese. That project, which is currently being shopped to potential networks, has Tyson's full backing.
"I have been looking to tell my story for quite some time," Tyson previously said in a statement announcing the show. "With the recent launch of Legends Only League and the excitement from fans following my return to the ring, now feels like the perfect moment. I look forward to collaborating with Martin, Antoine, Jamie, and the entire creative team to bring audiences a series that not only captures my professional and personal journey but also inspires and entertains."
Still, despite Tyson's objections to the series, the cast and creative team of Hulu's "Mike" said they were determined to produce an unbiased take on his legacy.
"We were never trying to say that Mike Tyson is a hero or Mike Tyson is a villain," showrunner Karen Gist said in a recent interview with Entertainment Weekly. "Our goal was to take a very complicated and controversial figure and try to get under the hood of what he was praised and vilified for while staying true to our North Star of 'no one person is one thing.'"
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