SEE IT: First Look at The Fire Inside Starring Ryan Destiny and Brian Tyree in Biopic Based on Boxer Claressa Shields

The first images just dropped for “The Fire Inside”, the upcoming biopic about boxer Claressa Shields, written by Barry Jenkins and starring Ryan Destiny and Brian Tyree Henry. This film, previously titled “Flint Strong”, marks the directorial debut of Rachel Morrison, the Oscar-nominated cinematographer recognized for her work on “Mudbound”, making her the first woman ever nominated for Best Cinematography. Morrison has also worked on notable films like Ryan Coogler’s “Black Panther” and “Fruitvale Station”. So this all sounds like a big deal. Here’s more …

THE FIRE INSIDE is the inspirational true story of Claressa Shields, arguably the greatest female boxer of all time. Claressa, a high school Junior from Flint, Michigan, aided by her tough-love coach, Jason Crutchfield, pushes past all limitations to become the first American woman to win an Olympic gold medal in boxing. But even at the pinnacle of success, Claressa has to reckon with the fact that not all dreams are created equal, and the real fight has only just begun.

Get this, Claressa Shields herself is involved in the project as an executive producer. The film is set to premiere in September at the Toronto International Film Festival and will hit theaters this Christmas.

“The Fire Inside” has been in development for several years, with Jenkins attached to the project since the awards campaign for “Moonlight”, before its Oscar wins. The biopic draws from the 2015 documentary “T-Rex”, which chronicles Shields’ journey. Directed by Drea Cooper and Zackary Canepari, “T-Rex” was a tri-continental effort (North America, Europe, and Asia) that began production in 2012 and successfully raised $64,000 through crowdfunding, supplemented by major funding from Independent Lens.

Universal initially acquired the rights to Shields’ life story and the documentary in 2016 before the project moved to Amazon MGM. 

Check out the photos below all from Amazon MGM:

The post SEE IT: First Look at The Fire Inside Starring Ryan Destiny and Brian Tyree in Biopic Based on Boxer Claressa Shields first appeared on The Source.

The post SEE IT: First Look at The Fire Inside Starring Ryan Destiny and Brian Tyree in Biopic Based on Boxer Claressa Shields appeared first on The Source.