Editorial Staff
“Homeland” actor Rupert Friend will direct Bruce Willis in “Cornerman”, reports The Hollywood Reporter.
Willis is playing legendary boxing trainer Constantine “Cus” D’Amato in Friend’s feature-length directorial debut. Producing are Friend and Aimee Mullins for Circus Florist Films alongside Marc Butan and Ara Keshishian of MadRiver Pictures.
Cornerman will tell the story of how D’Amato, an International Boxing Hall of Fame member who worked with the likes of Floyd Patterson and Jose Torres, was introduced to a 13-year old Mike Tyson after having reluctantly retired as a boxing coach. After moving to the Catskills region of New York, where he ran a small gym with his long-term partner Camille, a friend dropped by with Tyson, who was getting into trouble with his fists, displaying raw but incredibly powerful talent. Seeing his extraordinary potential, D’Amato enrolled him in his gym and welcomed him in his home, determined to turn the mercurial hothead into a world champion.
D’Amato died in 1985, a little over a year before Tyson became the youngest world heavyweight titleholder in history at the age of 20 years and 4 months.
Producers will soon scout for an actor to play Tyson.
“Ultimately, this is a story about a deep love between two ferocious talents, each brave enough to admit their fears to the other, and so spur one another to greatness,” said Friend. “It is a story about fighting for what you believe in, and a film that will make you question what strength really is.”
