Russell Crowe to Star in MMA Film Featuring ONE Championship

"The Beast in Me" will start filming later this year.

(Mondadori Portfolio via Getty Images)

The latest attempt at bringing mixed martial arts to the silver screen will see Russell Crowe star in a film that also features combat sports promotion ONE Championship.

The Beast in Me

According to a report from Variety, The Beast in Me will see Crowe (Gladiator, A Beautiful Mind) play a “veteran trainer” who helps to prepare “out-of-work former MMA fighter” Daniel MacPherson (Land of Bad, Foundation) for a comeback in ONE Championship following the death of his brother.

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Part of "The Beast in Me" will shoot at Bangkok's Impact Arena. / (Sports Authority of Thailand)

Set to be directed by Tyler Atkins (Ocean Boy), production for The Beast in Me will begin later this year. Locations featured in the film will include Impact Arena in Bangkok, Thailand, and a ONE Friday Fights event on January 24 will reportedly provide the setting for a major scene in addition to some other footage collected during the card’s fight week.

Per the Variety report, ONE Championship has confirmed that Crowe (who also co-wrote the film’s script with David Frigerio) will be in Bangkok to film during the ONE Friday Fights event, as will ONE CEO Chatri Sityodtong.

ONE Championship CEO Chatri Sityodtong. / (ONE Championship)

“I am thrilled to be partnering with the star-studded cast and production team behind ‘The Beast in Me.’ Sityodtong told Variety. “I am confident ONE is the best platform to help tell their story of grit, perseverance and determination. We cannot wait to host their entire team in Bangkok at a ONE Friday Fights fight week in January.”

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There have been a number of movies during the relatively short history of MMA that have brought the action of the sport to the big screen, and at UFC 285 last year Jake Gyllenhaal famously entered the Octagon to film scenes for the Road House remake that also starred former two-division UFC champion Conor McGregor.

ONE Championship is coming off a huge ONE 168 event last week at Ball Arena in Denver, CO, and the promotion is set to return to the United States in November for ONE 169 in Atlanta, GA, which will feature triple-champ Anatoly Malykhin defending his heavyweight belt in the main event along with three other title bouts.

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