Forest Whitaker Talks Fighting Styles in Bloodsport (Exclusive)
Big George Foreman: The Miraculous Story of the Once and Future Heavyweight Champion of the World is hitting theaters tomorrow, and it stars Khris Davis as the titular boxer as well as Lawrence Gilliard Jr., Sonja Sohn, and Forest Whitaker. ComicBook.com had the chance to chat with Whitaker about his role as Doc Broadus in the new film as well as some of his fighting movies from the past. Not only did Whitaker talk about the 2015 boxing movie Southpaw, but he also spoke about working on the Jean-Claude Van Damme martial arts classic from 1988, Bloodsport.
"It did, because it was like the first time you saw different styles all fighting each other," Whitaker replied when asked about Bloodsport's influence on MMA and fighting games. "That's not the first time, I think in Enter the Dragon, you get to see Bruce [Lee] fight different styles, which is unique, but Bloodsport had Monkey styles, all different styles ... And I think that's what really gets people, is watching all those different... the Thai boxer ... Chinese Hercules, that's what he was called in, I forget his real name [Bolo Yeung], he was sort of the villain in the show."
What Is Big George Foreman About?
Sony Pictures describes Big George Foreman: The Miraculous Story of the Once and Future Heavyweight Champion of the World as follows: "Big George Foreman is based on the remarkable true story of one of the greatest comebacks of all time and the transformational power of second chances. Fueled by an impoverished childhood, Foreman channeled his anger into becoming an Olympic Gold medalist and World Heavyweight Champion, followed by a near-death experience that took him from the boxing ring to the pulpit But when he sees his community struggling spiritually and financially, Foreman returns to the ring and makes history by reclaiming his title, becoming the oldest and most improbable World Heavyweight Boxing Champion ever."
Khris Davis On Playing George Foreman:
"It's a lot of pressure and, and make no mistake. Mr. Foreman can still knock you out," Davis told ComicBook.com with a big laugh. "It's a lot of pressure, but, you know, I felt a big responsibility because I felt like this was a story that needed to be told because Mr. Foreman's story had just been bypassed for so long, you know, and when I read his autobiographies and I looked at all the footage that I could find on Mr Foreman, I thought it was miraculous that this individual had such an incredible and impressive life."
Big George Foreman: The Miraculous Story of the Once and Future Heavyweight Champion of the World premieres on April 28th.