Michael B. Jordan’s Muhammad Ali series scores Prime Video release date

Here we go – Amazon has finally slipped out the release date for its upcoming Muhammad Ali drama, and there’s a bit more going on under the surface than your typical boxing biopic.

When and where to watch

Mark your calendars for Wednesday, 4 November. That’s when The Greatest lands on Prime Video. No, not a documentary for the boxing purists, but the first time a properly authorised, scripted TV project has tackled the man everyone still calls the GOAT. Bit of a coup, that: Ali’s widow, Lonnie Ali, is backing it herself in an executive producer role, which should keep things honest.

The team in the ring

If the behind-the-scenes team has a bit of gloss, that’s because showrunner Ben Watkins, who created Cross, is steering the ship. But the real name likely to turn heads is Michael B. Jordan, attached here as producer through his company Outlier Society. Suppose he knows a thing or two about high-profile punches, what with all those Creed films.

And yes, this isn’t ‘the story of a fight’ stuff. Instead, Prime are selling it as an intimate take on Ali's transformation – from cocky, impossibly fast-talking champion to global activist and humanitarian. Personal battles, public battles, all in one go.

Who’s actually Ali, then?

Slipping on the gloves is Jaalen Best – most people will have spotted him in All American: Homecoming or Magnum P.I. before now. The trailer (yes, had a nosey at it) gives a decent look at his bulked-up physicality, with the classic training montages as Ali gears up to become the youngest heavyweight champion in history. Bit of a transformation, physically and otherwise.

Only the relevant people list:

• Jaalen Best as Muhammad Ali (lead)
• Dana Gourrier – (from Kidnap)
• Amin Joseph – (Snowfall)
• Kai Parham – (Colin in Black and White)
• Ben Watkins (showrunner and exec producer)
• Lonnie Ali (exec producer)
• Michael B. Jordan and Elizabeth Raposo (Outlier Society)
• Corey Salter, Marc Rosen, Matthew Gross, Aiyana White, Jeff Augustin, and Owen Shiflett (all exec producers)

Production details and what’s different

There’s no shortage of companies throwing their weight behind this: Authentic Studios, Grace: A Storytelling Company, Roc Nation (yes, Jay-Z’s lot), and Polygram Entertainment. It's not a stuffy prestige project, but there is clearly proper money and intent behind it.

The series promises to steer clear of just re-staging Ali’s greatest hits. Instead, it bills itself as a peek into the relentless pressure cooker Ali lived in, the actual choices facing him as he became bigger than sport, then bigger than America itself.

If you’re after an official word on the tone, here’s the money quote from Prime’s announcement, setting out their stall:

'An intimate look at the man born Cassius Clay, following his transformation from heavyweight champion of the world to a global humanitarian.'