Michael James Shaw & Jayson Warner Smith will appear in Fight Night series
By Renee Hansen
Walking Dead alums Michael James Shaw (Mercer) and Jayson Warner Smith (Gavin) have been announced for the upcoming crime drama series at Peacock, Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist.
Created by Shaye Ogbonna, who is also the showrunner, the limited series is based on the same-titled podcast co-written by host Jeff Keating and Jim Roberts. The ten-part series chronicles the largest black-on-black heist that was orchestrated in 1970 on the night boxing champion Muhammad Ali returned to the world of boxing in a match held in Atlanta, Georgia.
Fight Night tells the story of hustler Chicken Man and Detective J.D. Hudson, who is tasked with solving the crime. Hudson was one of Atlanta's first Black officers to rise to that rank. The heist occurred at a lavish after-party of which the guest list included some of the wealthiest people in the country, hosted by Chicken Man, who was suspected of masterminding the whole thing.
The stacked cast includes Kevin Hart, who also executive produces, as Chicken Man, the man behind the heist, with Don Cheadle as Detective J.D. Hudson. Dexter Darden portrays Ali, and the additional cast includes Samuel L. Jackson, Terrence Howard, Taraji P. Henson, and Chloe Bailey. Michael James Shaw and Jayson Warner Smith will also appear in the series.
Fight Night will debut all episodes on Peacock on September 5, and the official trailer can be viewed below.
Michael James Shaw - other roles
Michael James Shaw made quite a stir when he was cast for the role of Mercer in The Walking Dead's final season. He appeared on the series as if he walked directly from the comic page as he brought Mercer's comic story to life on screen. He excited the fandom when he uttered one of the best lines in Walking Dead history: “Time to F— S— up!”
He is well known for his role as Corvus Glaive, which he portrayed in Marvel's Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame. Other roles he is known for include Agent Mike on Limitless, Desmond Visser or The Enemy Within, and Aiden Shaw on Blood & Treasure.
Jayson Warner Smith - other roles
Jayson Warner Smith portrayed Gavin, a high-ranking member of Negan's (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) Saviors in The Walking Dead during seasons 7 and 8. After his death, he reappears to Morgan Jones (Lennie James) in a hallucination.
He recently appeared in a short film, Chipper, which saw much success during its festival run. He has also appeared in Outer Banks, Candy, Where the Crawdads Sing, Emancipations, You're Killing Me, and more.
Don't miss Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist on Peacock this fall.
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