Big Mo ended up in a Mike Tyson biopic after a chance meeting with the screenwriter of a massive Margot Robbie movie.
At the peak of his powers, the former heavyweight world champion was a true force of nature, bamboozling opponents with his iconic peek-a-boo style before rendering them unconscious with his terrifying combinations.
Tyson ruthlessly finished Larry Holmes to avenge Muhammad Ali, en route to cementing his status as one of the greatest to have ever laced up the gloves.
Therefore, with a passion for combat sports coursing through his veins, Big Mo jumped at the opportunity to act in a TV series about the icon’s life story.
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Big Mo landed role in Mike Tyson biopic after meeting screenwriter for I, Tonya
Years before he would ultimately introduce Jake Paul vs Mike Tyson on Netflix, Big Mo bumped into a screenwriter for the hit Margot Robbie film — I, Tonya.
The encounter set off a sequence of events that resulted in the master of ceremonies ending up on set, filming ‘Mike’ on Hulu.
In an exclusive interview with Bloody Knockout, the American reminisced: “So, that’s a funny side quest that I’ve had in my career. I want to pursue acting more. I’m working on getting that started, but that was my first true acting experience that I had.
“Here’s how the story goes: I was in Los Angeles, and I met a screenwriter who ended up writing the movie I, Tonya, with Margot Robbie, where she plays Tonya Harding. I became friends with him, had a drink, and went about my life.
“About a year later, I get a call from my buddy, who is an actor in Georgia. He goes, ‘Hey, they have a casting for a ring announcer, you should take a look’. I was like, ‘Okay’.
“I saw it was for a Mike Tyson TV show. Now with castings, they never really give you much information, they keep it very vague, so you don’t leak what they’re doing.
“Then, I see the screenwriter is the guy I met in Los Angeles, so I was like, ‘No way’, so I connected with him. Long story short, I end up getting the role. I actually thought I was cast as Michael Buffer, to be honest.
“I wasn’t even really a ring announcer, I was more of a commentator, radio type of person.
“I remember, I show up, first acting role I ever have is a 30-second monologue on camera, but it was announcing. I knew how to do it, I knew how to do the voice inflection and emphasize certain words, because it was scripted like a boxing announcer, and I do that for a living.
“I delivered my lines — one take. I remember, the whole cast was like, ‘Have you done this before’? I was like, ‘Yeah, I kind of do this occasionally’.
“It went great, I loved it, and then my scene got cut on the editing room floor. I never got to be in the show, I’m credited, which is very nice, but I never appeared in the show which is a shame.
“But the universe works in weird ways. The fact that I was announcing Mike Tyson in this theatrical show, and then two years later I’m actually meeting him and introducing him in real life is crazy.”
Big Mo reveals what it was like to introduce Mike Tyson against Jake Paul
Big Mo has made incredible memories throughout his career, from announcing in Denver car parks to playing his part in the first-ever Burmese Boxing show in North America.
However, introducing Mike Tyson and Jake Paul in front of 70,000 people at the AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, USA, stands out from the pack.
The 29-year-old enthused: “It’s crazy how fast it’s gone, don’t get me wrong, when I started in this industry, I knew what I wanted to accomplish and I knew that I had the capabilities of doing good things, and I didn’t want to be in the industry for 25 years before I did a big fight — I wanted it now.
“I remember when BOXXER signed me, I did Claressa Shields vs Savannah Marshall at the O2 Arena, sold-out, 20,000 people, on Sky.
“At that point, I thought I could do anything. After you do an undisputed world title fight, there’s not a whole lot past that.
“So, then my career progressed, I started doing more fights, and then this opportunity came up with Netflix and introduced Mike Tyson.
“It’s gone so fast, but I’ve been very appreciative, and it’s been a whirlwind. I’m just getting started, which is the craziest part.
“Introducing Mike Tyson on that platform was surreal, but at the same time, it also felt right.”