Winston Duke merrily stole scenes in Black Panther (and cropped up in Avengers: Infinity War) as M'Baku, and the impressive breakout has led to several solid roles in upcoming films. Now he's nabbed a lead, making a deal to play MMA legend Kevin "Kimbo Slice" Ferguson in new film Backyard Legend.
With White Boy Rick writer Andy Weiss on script duty, Legend will chronicle Ferguson's incredible story, which saw him go from homelessness to mixed martial arts fame after brutal backyard brawls drew a huge audience on YouTube.
But the high-energy sport wasn't the only battle he faced – Ferguson also struggled with high blood pressure for years, and eventually died a few months after his last match, succumbing at the age of 42 to heart failure and a liver mass in 2016.
"It’s a rich and layered tale about this man’s incredible journey from a poor neighborhood in Miami to becoming a worldwide phenomenon,," says producer Steve Lee Jones. "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!”
Duke, who will also serve as an executive producer alongside Kimbo's longtime friend, employer and manager Michael Imber, also seems excited for the part: “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."
Following on from his Marvel duties, Duke is also attached to one of the main roles in Jordan Peele's next film, Us.
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