Flint Strong
Flint Strong is an upcoming American biographical sports film by Rachel Morrison in her feature directional debut. The film is based on T-Rex, a documentary about American professional boxer Claressa "T-Rex" Shields training for the 2012 Summer Olympics. Ryan Destiny will star as the lead, alongside Judy Greer and Brian Tyree Henry.
Flint Strong | |
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Directed by | Rachel Morrison |
Screenplay by | Barry Jenkins |
Based on | T-Rex by Zackary Canepari Drea Cooper |
Produced by |
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Starring | |
Cinematography | Rina Yang[1] |
Edited by | Harry Yoon[2] |
Music by | Tamar-kali |
Production companies |
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Distributed by | Amazon MGM Studios[3] |
Release date |
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Country | United States |
Language | English |
Development began in October 2016 with Barry Jenkins adapting the documentary for Universal Pictures. Morrison joined to direct in June 2019 with Michael De Luca, Elishia Holmes, Zackary Canepari, and Drea Cooper to produce alongside Jenkins. Destiny was added in November, and Ice Cube and Greer were cast in early 2020. Filming began in March 2020, but then got halted two days later. It was scheduled to resume in June 2021. However, Cube left in October and Universal put the film in a turnaround. It was then picked up by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in May 2022 with Henry and Oluniké Adeliyi joining the cast and filming resuming that month.
Flint Strong is scheduled to be released in theaters on August 9, 2024, by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.
Plot
Claressa "T-Rex" Shields trains to box in the 2012 Summer Olympics.
Cast
- Ryan Destiny as Claressa "T-Rex" Shields
- Judy Greer
- Brian Tyree Henry as Jason Crutchfield
- Oluniké Adeliyi as Jackie Shields
- De'Adre Aziza as Mickey
Production
On October 7, 2016, Universal Pictures hired Barry Jenkins to adapt the documentary T-Rex with the possibility to direct the film.[4] On June 19, 2019, Rachel Morrison was set to make her directorial debut on Flint Strong; Jenkins would produce with Michael De Luca and Elishia Holmes, while Zackary Canepari and Drea Cooper, who worked on T-Rex would serve as executive producers.[5]
On November 13, 2019, Ryan Destiny was cast as Claressa "T-Rex" Shields.[6] On February 5, 2020, Ice Cube was cast as Shields' coach, Jason Crutchfield.[7] Judy Greer was added on May 14.[8] However, on October 29, 2021, it was reported that Cube had left the project after refusing to get vaccinated for COVID-19 to film Oh Hell No (now titled Stepdude) for Columbia Pictures, putting the film in turnaround.[9]
Principal photography began on March 11, 2020, but on March 13, production was halted due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[10][11] In an interview with The Guardian, Shields stated that production was set to resume in June 2021.[12] However, the project entered a long delay due to being offloaded by Universal. It would be picked up by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, and on May 25, 2022, Brian Tyree Henry joined the cast to replace Cube and Oluniké Adeliyi joined to play Shields' mother, with filming resuming later that month.[13] On July 6, 2022, De'Adre Aziza joined the cast as Mickey, Crutchfield's wife.[14]
Release
The film is scheduled for release on August 9, 2024.[15]
References
- "Flint Strong Cinematographer". Archived from the original on 2022-06-22. Retrieved 2022-06-22.
- "Harry Yoon" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 2022-06-04. Retrieved 2023-04-25.
- Whittock, Jesse (2023-05-08). "Amazon MGM Studios Distribution To Launch At LA Screenings". Deadline. Retrieved 2023-09-13.
- Fleming, Mike Jr. (October 7, 2016). "'Moonlight's Barry Jenkins To Script Story Of First American Female Gold Medal Boxer Claressa 'T-Rex' Shields". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on January 8, 2020. Retrieved November 14, 2019.
- Kroll, Justin (June 19, 2018). "'Black Panther' DP Rachel Morrison to Make Directorial Debut on Barry Jenkins Script 'Flint Strong'". Variety. Archived from the original on November 26, 2019. Retrieved November 14, 2019.
- N’Duka, Amanda (November 13, 2019). "Ryan Destiny To Lead The Rachel Morrison-Directed Boxing Drama 'Flint Strong'". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on August 4, 2020. Retrieved November 14, 2019.
- Kroll, Justin (February 5, 2020). "Ice Cube to Star in Sports Drama 'Flint Strong'". Variety. Archived from the original on February 6, 2020. Retrieved February 10, 2020.
- "Judy Greer Boards Universal's Rachel Morrison Boxing Drama 'Flint Strong'". 14 May 2020. Archived from the original on 2020-05-20. Retrieved 2020-05-14.
- Masters, Kim; Kit, Borys (2021-10-29). "Ice Cube Exits Sony Comedy 'Oh Hell No' After Declining COVID-19 Vaccine". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on 2021-11-25. Retrieved 2021-11-26.
- Kroll, Justin (March 13, 2020). "Universal Halts Production on Live-Action Films Including 'Jurassic World: Dominion' Due to Coronavirus". Variety. Archived from the original on March 14, 2020. Retrieved March 16, 2020.
- Morrison, Rachel (March 13, 2020). "I started this morning scouting an amazing set..." Instagram. Archived from the original on 2021-12-26. Retrieved March 28, 2020.
- Hunt, Loretta (June 10, 2021). "Claressa Shields: 'I can drive through Flint now and not get flashbacks'". The Guardian. Archived from the original on June 27, 2021. Retrieved June 27, 2021.
- Kit, Borys (May 25, 2022). "Brian Tyree Henry Boards Flint Strong As Boxing Drama Finds New Studio Home, Restarts Shooting (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on 25 May 2022. Retrieved 25 May 2022.
- Grobar, Matt (2022-07-06). "Rachel Morrison's MGM Drama 'Flint Strong' Adds De'Adre Aziza; Arden Myrin To Star In Indie 'Step Aside'". Deadline. Archived from the original on 2022-07-06. Retrieved 2022-07-06.
- "Flint Strong". Fandango Media. June 19, 2023. Retrieved June 19, 2023.
External links
- Flint Strong at IMDb