- 8 minutes ago
Amazon MGM Studios pulls back the curtain on its highly anticipated series, The Greatest, chronicling the life of Muhammad Ali. From showrunner and creator Ben Watkins (Cross) and Michael B. Jordan’s Outlier Society, alongside Authentic Studios, Roc Nation, Polygram Entertainment, and Grace: A Storytelling Company, the series explores the extraordinary life of Ali both inside and outside the ring. Starring Jaalen Best as Cassius Clay alongside Omari Hardwick, Dana Gourrier, Amin Joseph, Kai Parham, Michael Ealy, and more, the story reveals the man behind the legend. The world remembers an icon, but The Greatest tells the story of a husband, father, brother, and son.
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00:00It is such a pleasure to be here with you all on 4th of July as we celebrate an iconic
00:06American hero whose story still resonates for so much of us so many years later.
00:12Today we're getting an exclusive first look at the greatest, Prime Video's upcoming series about the life of Muhammad Ali.
00:18This isn't simply the story of the champion we all know, it's the story of Cassius Clay becoming Muhammad Ali.
00:25The husband, the father, the son, the brother, the activist, and ultimately the man whose impact reached far beyond the
00:34boxing ring.
00:36So please help me in welcoming our incredible panelists, Ben Watkins, creator and showrunner and EP.
00:46There you go.
00:48Dana Gurrier, who plays Odessa Bird Clay.
00:54There you go.
00:56Aben Joseph, who plays Sonny Liston.
01:03Kai Parham, who plays Rudy Clay.
01:07Michael Ealy, who plays Malcolm X.
01:13And ladies and gentlemen, introducing Jalen Best as Cassius Clay.
01:28Welcome, everybody.
01:29How are you guys feeling?
01:30Feeling good.
01:31How y'all doing today?
01:36Ben, I want to start with you.
01:38Guys, if you don't know, Ben is the visionary behind another series that I think you guys probably loved.
01:43Cross.
01:44All this, Hodge, yeah?
01:46All right.
01:47We got some Cross fans out here.
01:48We got some Cross fans over here.
01:51What's up, fam?
01:54Ben, what made you want to tell this story of Muhammad Ali and why now?
01:59Well, I mean, I think for me, it's a childhood, since I was a kid, this was my childhood hero.
02:05So my whole life, this is somebody I looked up to.
02:08And as far as right now, I think I would have told this story whenever I had the chance, but
02:14I think the world needs it now more than ever because of everything that he represented.
02:19Yeah.
02:19And this is a true origin story.
02:21This is going to be the first time where people are going to really get a chance to see behind
02:24the curtain and see the coming of age story and how Cassius Clay became Muhammad Ali, as opposed to the
02:31thing they've all seen, the hero and the icon that they're all used to seeing.
02:34Absolutely.
02:36Jalen, I'm going to go to you next.
02:38You know, you're surrounded by an incredible cast and creative team.
02:42You've got the incredible Ben Watkins as your showrunner.
02:46And there's a guy named Michael B. Jordan, who's your executive producer.
02:50But at the center of this story, you're bringing a young Cassius Clay to life, you know, before he became
02:57Muhammad Ali.
02:58What responsibility did you have in getting this right?
03:01And where did you start with building that character out?
03:03Yeah, I mean, it was a challenging one for sure.
03:06And a lot of responsibility tied to that.
03:08But I think first, the main important thing for me was the amazing cast and people that I was able
03:13to work with who made me feel safe, who made me feel supported.
03:17And this was like my family away from my family.
03:19So it was nice having them and feeling that support.
03:22But I think the responsibility aspect of it, you know, as a kid, we have these moments and these dreams
03:28where we write on paper like, oh, you know, I want to be a superhero when I'm older or I
03:31want to make it to the league or something of that nature.
03:34For me, it was being a superhero. And Muhammad Ali is my superhero.
03:39So I'm doing that. I'm living in my dream.
03:42Oh, I love that. Was there anything that surprised you about his early life?
03:46If so, what was that?
03:49Surprising. I think it was just amazing to see someone be so committed to their faith, you know, despite what
03:56people say.
03:56And I think that's something we could take away today is being committed to our faith.
04:00And another thing specifically was the ability for him to believe in himself and the way he believed in himself.
04:07And I think that's something I would give to the younger generation.
04:10Believe in yourself so much that it doesn't matter what people believe, because that's always going to trump what anybody's
04:16opinion is of you.
04:17Phenomenal answer. Dana, Queen of New Orleans, I'm coming to you next.
04:22Yeah.
04:23Yeah.
04:23Yeah.
04:24Yeah.
04:25Yeah.
04:28Yeah.
04:41You know, it's funny. Whenever I see an athlete in front of a microphone with a trophy next to them
04:49or receiving an accolade, nine times out of 10, the first person that they're thanking is their mother.
04:56Yeah.
04:57I think it means that the light we cast on mothers and the women figures in our lives, I think
05:04there needs to be more of it.
05:06You know, it's the schedules kept. Is the uniform clean? Do they have cleats that fit them?
05:12You know, you want to know about an opponent, ask a sports figure or athlete's mother.
05:17They're going to know all the stats. And in my thought process about Bird, Odessa Bird, Clay, I know she
05:24knew every stat about any one of his opponents or his for that matter.
05:28Yeah.
05:28So I think it's the moms who are up early and up late, going to bed late and, you know,
05:34making sure their babies are taken care of. I think more light needs to be cast on the women in
05:39these figures' lives.
05:40I think if you ask Muhammad Ali, the champion of the world, who the real champion is, he'd say his
05:44mother.
05:44Absolutely. Absolutely.
05:47Dana, I'm going to stay with you. I'm going to stay with you because you've been a professional actor for
05:5215 years.
05:53And this is the first time you're a series regular in a project.
05:57Yeah, girl. Yeah, yeah.
06:00What does it mean for you for that accolade to be for this role in particular?
06:05It means everything. First of all, I feel like Odessa Bird, Clay, herself, her spirit, chose me along with our
06:11fearless leader, Ben Watkins, and this young man here, too.
06:15When I walked through the door and we saw each other, it was game over.
06:17You know, the chemistry was there. The love was there immediately.
06:20But to be in my hometown celebrating this with you, I went to Ursuline Academy Uptown, okay?
06:26I grew up in the East, y'all. So to be here celebrating this with you all, it means everything.
06:32You know, I didn't get my Screen Actors Guild card until I was, like, 30, and so it felt like
06:37I was behind the curve.
06:37But you're never behind the curve. You're always right on time. So it means everything.
06:41Yeah, I love that answer. Thank you.
06:44So, Kai, I'm coming to you. You know, I think one thing that is so beautiful about this series is
06:51the brotherhood behind the camera and in front of the camera.
06:55And I can tell you guys, behind the camera, y'all are singing R&B songs and there's secret handshakes
07:02and things like that when you guys greet each other.
07:04What can you tell me about this brotherhood?
07:07Because it really seems like it plays a strong role in creating the chemistry that we ultimately see over the
07:12course of this series.
07:12Um, I think for me and Jalen, really, we were blessed to kind of click earlier on.
07:20So we met during the audition process and we were waiting to do our screen test and it was just
07:26me and him there talking for about five to ten minutes.
07:28Yeah.
07:29And we weren't talking anything about the audition. We were talking about, oh, where'd you get your pants from or
07:34what you, you know, what shoes you got on, that kind of thing.
07:37And so I think from that moment, we really bonded, which allowed us to get to set and almost not
07:44even have to act.
07:45We just existed within the space of one another.
07:48And so I think it was very, very special to have that brotherhood on camera and off camera.
07:53I was going to say, so what was the moment where you felt you guys were actually a family?
07:57Was there a particular scene you guys were working through where you said, all right, this feels authentic?
08:01No, there wasn't a scene, but, you know, me and Jalen did a lot of training together off camera.
08:07And so we would spar a little bit here and there and we would box.
08:10And one time Jalen got me. He jabbed me one good time.
08:14And I went to attack him and he said, hey, hey, hey, hey, what's, you okay?
08:18What you, you all right?
08:19And I think in that moment, realizing that, you know, he was checking on me as if I was his
08:23little brother for real.
08:25That moment was like, oh, this is, this is something special.
08:27Yeah. Oh, I love that answer. Thank you for that.
08:31Amen. Amen, amen.
08:33Yeah.
08:34Every, every great story needs someone who challenges the hero.
08:39And Sonny Liston was so much more than an opponent in Ali's story.
08:44As an actor, what did you discover about him?
08:46And what do you think audiences will be surprised to learn about him over the course of this series?
08:50When I got the audition material for this piece, this brother, Ben Watkins, this man can write.
08:57He write his ass off, man.
08:59And I got this audition material for Sonny Liston.
09:04And the humanity just bled off the page.
09:08This is an honor.
09:09It's an honor to play our legends.
09:11And this, this, this production has so many of our ancestors.
09:16I'm proud to be a part of this show.
09:20It's amazing.
09:20I can't wait for y'all to see it.
09:22And I'm going to whip Clay's ass.
09:25I'm going to whip your ass, Clay.
09:28No, no.
09:30I'm going to, I'm going to stay with you here.
09:32Because I know you have a lot of, a lot of Snowfall fans out there too.
09:35What made you say yes, see, what made you say yes to this role?
09:38And where were you in your career when it came to you?
09:41I was coming off of Snowfall and iconic character with Uncle Jerome.
09:46Big shout out to the sequel of that show as well.
09:49But this gave me an opportunity to, to literally take the wig off, right?
09:56It gave me an opportunity to do what I love the most, which is step into another character
10:02with a clean slate.
10:03And yeah, I'm honored.
10:05I love this cast.
10:07Yo, the greatest.
10:09This show is going to be something.
10:13Mr. Michael Ely.
10:21Do you guys know this guy?
10:23Is that, is that what's happening?
10:24Have you guys seen his work before?
10:27Got it.
10:29So, so far today, we've talked about family, about rivalry, and about the people who shaped
10:36Muhammad Ali's journey.
10:38Malcolm X was absolutely one of those defining relationships in his life.
10:42What do you hope audiences understand about the impact that these two men had, not just
10:47on one another, but on America?
10:52I would say, first and foremost, it was an honor to play Malcolm X.
10:59And I really do appreciate Ben for calling.
11:04Thank you for calling, because as I told you, this was like a dream come true for me, as
11:09it was for you to, to, to play, uh, to play Muhammad Ali.
11:13Um, one of the things that I got was, like on the first day, it was abundantly clear, Jalen
11:21and I didn't see each other before we sat down as characters.
11:24That was by design.
11:26And thank you for that, by the way, as well.
11:28Uh, and the minute we sat down and started doing the scene, it was abundantly clear that
11:34this relationship would be more, when it comes to Islam, more of a, um, uh, a mentor and
11:40a mentee type of relationship, uh, a big brother and a little brother type of relationship.
11:45And I think that was, I think we were able to accomplish that, and I'm quite proud of that,
11:49because I think mentorship is key, and I think it's important that we continue to mentor each
11:56other and shape each other.
11:57Just backstage, I was telling these guys, this is your first time on the Essence stage.
12:02Yeah.
12:02You only get one time.
12:03Yeah.
12:04As your first time.
12:05Yeah.
12:05So cherish this, because it's special to be here.
12:08Yeah.
12:08No, I love that.
12:10We're gonna, we're gonna stay with you, uh, Ely, because Malcolm X, I mean, not afraid to
12:18take that on, but, but where did you start with him, you know, um, because I can imagine
12:22that that wasn't, I mean, that was pretty, a heady role for you to kind of take on
12:26and, and morph into becoming him.
12:27So what did you do in preparation for becoming Malcolm X for this series?
12:32Um, I, there was a lot that I did, obviously, um, but the most effective thing was talking
12:39to his daughter, Ambassador Shabazz, and, and trying to understand what kind of man he
12:45was, um, because we all see the icon, you know, the man who was the, the key of resistance.
12:54But who, who was he as a father?
12:56Who was he as a husband?
12:58Those were the kind of things that I kind of honed in on and tried to bring to the screen
13:02as much as possible.
13:03Yeah.
13:04So there's obviously plenty of boxing in the series, but ultimately that's not really what
13:11this series is about.
13:12So I would love to go down the line and ask you guys if the audience has, if you would
13:16love for the audience to have one takeaway from the series other than boxing, what would
13:21that be and why?
13:22Ben, let's start with you.
13:24I think for me, it's really important.
13:26Um, and in, in crafting the story, what really landed for me was that Muhammad Ali, before
13:33he was ever Muhammad Ali was just a kid with fears and dreams and obligations and flaws.
13:42And, and so I think I would love for people to understand when they tune in to watch this
13:48story, they're not tuning in to see a fully formed icon.
13:52They're tuning in to see the first stages of somebody who would become a legend.
13:57Yeah.
13:57I love that answer.
13:59Jalen, let's go down to you for that.
14:01Um, I would say that whoever at this, this TV show is for everybody.
14:08And regardless of how much you know about Muhammad Ali, anybody can tune into this show and still
14:15fall in love because it's a story about a beautiful black family.
14:19And I think that's, is important for itself.
14:22So the show is for everybody.
14:24Love that.
14:25Dana, you're up next.
14:27I hope the takeaway is not only the family life, but also I hope everyone is just inspired
14:34with each individual character on this show.
14:37So Sonny Liston is extraordinary.
14:39He has an extraordinary story.
14:41Malcolm X, obviously, you know what I mean?
14:44Uh, Kai Parham portrays Rudy in this exquisite way.
14:47And so does Jalen as Muhammad.
14:49The work that everyone, the work that Ben poured into directing, writing, show running,
14:56carrying this show, it being his brainchild.
14:59I think everyone will find connectivity to it.
15:01I think everyone will get the goosebumps, the involuntary goosebumps that you don't expect.
15:06And I think it's going to really move people.
15:08And Jalen's right.
15:09It is for everyone.
15:11It's for the mamas, the papas, the athletes.
15:14It's for the ladies.
15:16It's for everybody.
15:17And I hope you all watch.
15:20Love that.
15:20Oh, I hope you all watch.
15:23Yes.
15:24Kai, yourself.
15:25I would say I want loyalty, loyalty in a broad spectrum, just loyal to your family, loyal to
15:34your beliefs, loyal to yourself.
15:38I think loyalty is the biggest thing that I personally took away from shooting and just
15:43being around this wonderful cast and being a part of the project, the power of loyalty
15:48as it spans through any aspect of life.
15:50So I would say loyalty for sure.
15:52Loyalty.
15:52That's great.
15:53Amen.
15:54How about yourself?
15:55Hey, listen, I did a lot of push-ups for this role.
15:59You feel me?
16:00I got that shirt off.
16:01I'm trying to get some of these Michael Ealy numbers.
16:05You feel me?
16:06Like, you know, vote for Sonny.
16:14Love it.
16:16Ealy, last but not least.
16:19I just want to piggyback kind of what Ben said, which is when you meet Cassius Clay, he
16:25is not a fully formed Muhammad Ali.
16:27He's got to get there.
16:29And the same thing holds true for Rudy.
16:32And what's magical about this script to me was you got to see that they had courage and
16:38curiosity before they became icons.
16:41Do you understand?
16:42Like, that is something that they got from their parents, played by Dana and the incomparable
16:49Amari Hardwick, who's not here right now.
16:51Yeah, he sends his love.
16:52So, yeah, he sends his love.
16:53But as their parents, they really did influence these kids.
16:58And good or bad, whatever you think, you know, they influenced them.
17:03But these two guys had a lot of courage to do what they did.
17:07And you get to see that before they became, you know, the big icons.
17:12And then that, obviously, they took courage to the next level.
17:16You know, the big one.
17:18You know, the big one.
17:20You know, the big one.
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