“Marvelous” Marvin Hagler, who is fondly remembered as one of the best middleweight boxers of all time, might be getting the big screen treatment soon.
Academy Award-winning actor Sam Rockwell and Mark Berger of Play Hooky Productions are planning to adapt a book about Hagler into a new film, per the Hollywood Reporter.
The production company secured the rights to an upcoming book about the boxer, entitled Blood & Hate: The Untold Story of Marvelous Marvin Hagler’s Battle for Glory. Rockwell and Berger will produce and Rockwell is said to be eyeing the role of one of the Petronelli brothers, who worked as Hagler’s manager and trainers.
The book’s author, New York Times bestselling author Dave Wedge, and Ian McFarland will also serve as executive producers on the project. The book is currently slated to be released in 2025.
According to THR, the book follows Hagler from his underdog beginnings in Newark and move to Massachusetts where he began training with Goody and Pat Petronelli. They help the Black boxer train as he prepares for his first title shot against Alan Minter, who was backed by the white supremacist National Front and boasted ‘No Black man’ would take his title.”
“I remember watching Marvin Hagler’s fights in the ’80s and was always astonished by his talent and grit. He was an extraordinary southpaw. Now to be able to tell his underdog story, especially as a lifelong boxing fan, is a dream come true,” Rockwell said in a statement.
Hagler was the subject of an episode of the ESPN SportsCentury series 1999. He had 67 professional bouts, winning 62 with 52 knockouts. Hagler reigned as the middleweight division undisputed champion from 1980 to 1987.
