Written by Kianna Best on Sep 2, 2024. Posted in Production News

Fight Night puts Atlanta front and centre

Will Packer’s Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist is an all-star rollout featuring Kevin Hart, Samuel L. Jackson, Taraji P Henson and many more. The limited series surrounding Mohammed Ali’s Atlanta comeback to the ring puts the city front and centre, with a pre-premiere HBCU (Historically Black Colleges and Universities) promo run in a love letter to the show’s setting. Fight Night will begin streaming on Peacock from 5 September.

Image courtesy of Parrish Lewis/PEACOCK

Atlanta has been long known as an entertainment hub of the South, with the Georgia, USA, banner dotted across the credits of the biggest productions from Netflix to Marvel. Projects shot in the city recently include Superman: Legacy, Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire, as well as the return of Stranger Things for season 5 of the acclaimed show. The Fight Night limited series for Peacock takes a journey through the city, reimagined to transport audiences back to the 1970’s match up between famed fighter Ali and Jerry Quarry at Morehouse College.

Based on the iHeart true-crime podcast of the same name, the series follows the real life story of an armed robbery that took place during the fight. Produced by Packer, and through companies DogHouse Pictures and Hartbeat productions, the series stars Hart, Jackson, Henson, as well as Don Cheadle,  Chloe Bailey, Lori Harvey, and Terrence Howard, with Shaye Ogbonna leading as showrunner.

The series made its premiere at the Martha’s Vineyard African American Film Festival on 10 August, closing out its 22^nd edition. Set up by Run and Shoot Filmworks principals Floyd and Stephanie Rance in 2002, the Oscar-qualifying film festival also featured an opening night presentation of Coleman Domingo Starrer Sing Sing, special preview of the upcoming Wicked with Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande, as well as The Supremes at Earl’s All You Can Eat starring Uzo Aduba, Aujanue Ellis-Taylor and Sanaa Lathan.