(L) Winston Duke visits 'The IMDb Show.' February 15, 2018. (R) MMA fighter Kimbo Slice attends CBS's 'Elite XC Saturday Night Fights' Press Conference at CBS Radford Studios. May 19, 2008.
(L) photo by Rich Polk/Getty Images for IMDb / (R) photo by Stephen Shugerman/Getty Images
Winston Duke, who stole scenes in Marvel's Black Panther as M’Baku, has signed on to play Kimbo Slice in an upcoming biopic entitled Backyard Legend, Deadline reports. Slice started as a feared backyard brawler before making his way to the world of mixed martial arts (MMA). He died in June 2016 from heart failure.
The film will be written by Andy Weiss, who handled the screenplay for White Boy Rick. Producer Steve Lee Jones said in a statement: “It’s a rich and layered tale about this man’s incredible journey from a poor neighborhood in Miami to becoming a worldwide phenomenon. We are ecstatic that Winston has decided to take on this both physically and emotionally challenging role. We simply could not find a better Kimbo!”
In his own statement, Duke said, "I’m looking forward to exploring Kimbo’s story and interrogating the expectations society places on men like him who are their own special breed of hero.”