Will Smith is in the focus of attention The Angels. He has already left behind his scandal in the Oscars 2022 and his name was once again on everyone’s lips for his prominence in Bad Boys: until death (Bad Boys: Ride or Die), the fourth installment of the successful action comedy franchise. Although he broke his heel while jumping rope for the filming of this film, it wasn’t the worst thing that happened to him on a film set.
The American actor, now with 55 yearsHas revealed Surprising details about his experience playing legendary boxer Muhammad Ali in the boxer’s biographical film, which was released in 2001 and directed by Michael Mann.
These confessions were made in a recent interview on the program Hot Ones of First We Feast. The hardest blow he has received on the recording set of a movie was during the filming of this iconic movie, revealed by Smith himself.
During the filming of “Ali,” Smith worked closely with Michael Bentwho played the boxer Sonny Liston, also known as “The Big Bear” and for being the fighter on the ground in Ali’s iconic photo. As Smith told the presenter Sean Evans, While filming a boxing scene, an incident occurred that he will never forget.
“My trainer was trying to get me to advance the angle of my spine. And in that second I thought, ‘You know what? You have to commit.’ And I compromised and leaned forward”. In that moment, almost like an instinctive reflex, Bentt threw a right hand which Smith couldn’t completely dodge.
“I saw it coming at the last second and lowered my head, but I couldn’t dodge it. He caught me with a right hand right above my head”Smith explained. The actor described the impact as something that did not make his head snap back, but instead compressed his neck to his spine.
“I felt an electric shock that ran down the back of both arms to the elbows.…it was the hardest blow I’ve ever been hit on a movie set,” he recalled with shock as if he were feeling the electricity again.
The pain suffered at that moment was so intense that Smith could only think of one thing: “Where the fuck are my keys? Where are my car keys?”he recalled.
The dedication Smith put into portraying the pioneering boxer was not in vain: His performance in Ali earned him the first of his three Oscar nominations.. Michael Mann, the film’s director, is known for his obsession with authenticity, a trait that Smith highlighted during the interview with Evans.
He recalled in detail how Mann would not allow music that was created after the period they were filming to be played on set. “That’s how passionate it is to capture the authenticity of a moment”said Smith.
When Muhammad Ali passed away at age 74 in 2016, Smith was honored to play a special role at his funeral. He was one of the pallbearers for the late heavyweight champion. This was a sign of the deep respect and connection Smith felt toward the sports icon he so proudly portrayed on the big screen.
All that was left behind for the American actor and rapper. Currently he is focused on the release of the fourth Bad Boys film and the repercussions it is having. In Los Angeles, the premiere of the film brought together a crowd in Hollywood Boulevardwhere Will Smith was greeted with cheers and applause. The blows received, on this and other shoots, were worth it.
