- 'Something was wrong', defendant in French mass rape tells court
- Hezbollah chief admits 'unprecedented' blow in device blasts
- Sales of US existing homes slip slightly in August
- Fear, panic haunt Lebanese after devices explode
- Labuschagne sparks Australia fightback in England ODI opener
- S.Africa's HIV research power couple says fight goes on
- Why is Israel focusing on border with Lebanon?
- Mpox vaccines administered in Rwanda, first in Africa
- US Fed rate cut is 'very positive sign' for economy: Yellen
- Unknown Mozart string trio discovered in Germany
- 'Are we five-year-olds?' F1 drivers won't mind their language
- Brazil judge orders X to reimpose block or face hefty fine
- Munich to rename stadium street after Beckenbauer
- Champions Italy to face Argentina in Davis Cup Final 8
- The winding, fitful path to weight loss drug Ozempic
- Italians defeat American Magic to reach Louis Vuitton Cup final
- Norris has 'nothing to lose' as he hunts Verstappen in Singapore
- Kyiv 'outraged' at Swiss showing of Russian war film
- French city renames Abbe Pierre square after abuse claims
- Footballer charged after huge cannabis seizure at UK airport
- Vatican recognises Medjugorje shrine, but not Virgin's messages
- Bank of England freezes rate after jumbo US cut
- Playing Nadal is 'kind of a nightmare', says Alcaraz
- Portugal tackles last of deadly northern forest fires
- Ton-up Ashwin lifts India to 339-6 against Bangladesh
- Departing NATO chief warns US against 'isolationism'
- Coming winter 'sternest test yet' for Ukraine energy grid
- Evacuations as tail of Storm Boris floods northeast Italy
- Lebanon's Hezbollah reeling after second wave of deadly blasts
- Taiwan recognises same-sex marriages between Chinese, Taiwanese
- Stock markets rally after jumbo US rate cut
- Gabon's ousted leader Bongo says renouncing politics for good
- Lebanon device blasts: what we know about deadly attacks
- Late Harrods owner Al-Fayed accused of rape: BBC
- Hong Kong man sentenced 14 months for wearing 'seditious' T-shirt
- Lebanon's Hezbollah in disarray after second wave of deadly blasts
- Meta and Spotify blast EU decisions on AI
- Hasan takes three as Bangladesh rattle India in first Test
- Two killed during police operation in New Caledonia
- Flood-hit region leaders to meet in Poland to discuss EU aid
- Sri Lanka to vote in first poll since economic collapse
- Hong Kong probe finds Cathay Airbus defect could cause 'extensive' damage
- AI development cannot be left to market whim, UN experts warn
- All Blacks primed for 'hell' of a Wallabies clash
- Zoom fatigue? Try some nature in your background: study
- Japan walkie-talkie maker says investigating after Lebanon blasts
- Slipper to become most-capped Wallaby in All Blacks clash
- Tokyo surges on weak yen as Asian traders cheer big US rate cut
- Vast France building project sunk by sea level rise fears
- UK campaigners in green energy standoff reject 'nimby' label
RBGPF | 5.79% | 60.5 | $ | |
CMSC | -0.18% | 25.01 | $ | |
BCC | 3.81% | 142.495 | $ | |
BTI | -0.54% | 37.675 | $ | |
GSK | -1.03% | 41.996 | $ | |
SCS | -7.79% | 13.09 | $ | |
BP | 2.2% | 33.158 | $ | |
RYCEF | 5.48% | 6.93 | $ | |
NGG | -2% | 68.675 | $ | |
RIO | 3.8% | 65.395 | $ | |
JRI | -0.37% | 13.39 | $ | |
VOD | -1.74% | 10.055 | $ | |
CMSD | 0.4% | 25.08 | $ | |
BCE | -0.48% | 35.44 | $ | |
RELX | 1.33% | 48.01 | $ | |
AZN | 0.66% | 79.105 | $ |
Mike Tyson slams 'slave master' Hulu series for 'stealing' life story
Former heavyweight boxing champion Mike Tyson has accused an unauthorized television drama of stealing his life story, comparing the streaming platform behind the upcoming series to a "slave master."
"Mike," which premieres on US streamer Hulu August 25, is a scripted drama that re-enacts moments from the controversial fighter's life, from his early childhood and through his 1992 rape conviction.
"Hulu is the streaming version of the slave master. They stole my story and didn't pay me," wrote Tyson on Instagram.
He added: "I don't support their story about my life. It's not 1822. It's 2022. They stole my life story and didn't pay me."
"To Hulu executives I'm just a n****r they can sell on the auction block," he wrote, using asterisks in place of letters.
Hulu, which is only available in the United States, is majority-owned by Disney.
The show depicts Tyson being bullied as a young child with a lisp, his teenage years in and out of prison after joining a Brooklyn street gang, and his early start in boxing.
While the eight-part limited series shows Tyson in the ring during various famous bouts, it concentrates on his turbulent private life.
One episode focuses on Desiree Washington, the 18-year-old beauty pageant contestant who accused Tyson of rape in 1991. He was convicted the following year, and jailed for three years.
The episode tells the events of the rape in an Indianapolis hotel room, and the ensuing trial, from Washington's perspective and with her narration.
Creator and screenwriter Steven Rogers said the filmmakers actually "couldn't talk to" Tyson because "his life rights were already taken" by another project.
But he also pointed to the benefits of an unauthorized take on Tyson's life, saying "I don't like to be reliant on just one source."
"I really like to do the research, and get all these different opinions, and then put a story around all of that," he told a recent Television Critics Association panel.
"I don't like to be beholden to just one person."
Trevante Rhodes, who plays Tyson in the eight-part limited series, said "it feels best at least to detach yourself as much as you can."
Asked if he was worried about angering Tyson -- considered one of the best heavyweights of all time, who infamously bit off a piece of Evander Holyfield's ear in a 1997 bout -- Rhodes simply replied: "Nah."
- 'Baddest man on the planet' -
While confronting allegations of domestic violence, the show also contextualizes the violence Tyson suffered as a child, the early loss of his mother to cancer, his drug addiction issues, and efforts by establishment figures to take advantage of Tyson's lucrative success in the ring.
"When I was researching it, I found that a lot of the issues that we're struggling with today -- like Black Lives Matter, and MeToo, and prison reform and addiction and mental health issues all the stuff that we're struggling with -- have their roots in this one man's story," said showrunner Karin Gist.
"So it felt like a really good time to tell it, through the lens of the baddest man on the planet."
Rogers added: "I would hope that if he watches it, that he would change his opinion."
C.Amaral--PC