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By H. Alan Scott
Senior Editor
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Portraying any real-life figure is a daunting task for an actor. To do it with the explicit blessing of the subject’s family adds an entirely different level of pressure to get it absolutely right. For Jaalen Best, who portrays boxing champion Muhammad Ali in the new Prime original series The Greatest, that immense weight was felt every single day on set.
"I think truthfully I was just able to be grounded into my performance so much that whenever I felt anxiety or whenever I felt stressed during the scene, it was probably because maybe that's what he felt in that moment as well," Best tells Newsweek.
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Stepping into the ring as the most recognizable sports figure in human history requires a special kind of stamina. Best had to find a way to manage the sheer anxiety of playing a global legend while doing justice to a man beloved by millions. The actor knew his performance would be watched closely by the people who actually lived with and loved the man behind the myth.
"I've just put myself in their shoes and say, I can't imagine someone portraying my father on screen,” Best says, reflecting on how Ali’s family feels about somebody playing him. “And you hope that when people watch it that they take away something that's truly special and that honors the person that they love to the most dearest capacity."
In the series, the very first project to be officially sanctioned by Ali’s family, Best portrays Ali at the beginning of his career when he was just a teenager from Louisville trying to find his footing. For writer and director Ben Watkins, having the family on board was initially terrifying. He wanted to ensure the story showed Ali not just as the untouchable greatest of all time but also at his most vulnerable and weak moments.
"With Muhammad Ali, I didn't realize it, but I had deified Muhammad Ali,” Watkins said. “I think we all have. He was a god to me. So, one of the most refreshing parts of this journey was my own understanding that this was a person, and he was 18 when he won the gold medal in Rome and announced himself on the world stage."
Watkins notes that pulling back the curtain on his hero only deepened his respect for the boxer.
"What we got to do is introduce you to this real person, who still goes and does that,” Watkins says, referring to the immense achievements Ali achieved in his life. “They have flaws, and they overcome it. They have fears, and they push through. They have vulnerabilities, and they find a way to keep on doing their life. And that is what we all can relate to."
Finding that careful balance between the greatness of Ali and the weaker parts of his biography creates a rich scenario for Best to, for lack of a better word, do his absolute best.
"The thing that makes him great is the adversity, the mistakes, the moments that we know aren't glorified. I think that's what makes someone great, being able to see how they handle themselves in a loss," Best explains. "There was always a moment of him having to prove himself. And that truly is what made him great."
Best also drew parallels between his own life taking on a massive leading role and Ali stepping onto the world stage.
"Ben would tell me this all the time when we were shooting episode one, the Olympics, he would say, trust that this 18-year-old boy who's at this stage in life where he's about to change the world, where his family is relying on him, his trainer, all these people surrounding him are all relying on him to change the world in a certain way, to chase his dreams. His life is going to change, and their life is going to change."
For Best, accuracy was paramount. Getting into the mental state of a young Muhammad Ali was only half the battle. He also had to put in the grueling physical work to match the unmistakable physique of the heavyweight champion.
"When I got the role, I had to cut down, my lowest was 163 to play [the] 18-year-old on camera. That's almost 40 pounds," Best says, referring to the weight he had to lose. "Throughout that duration I was able to get up to 175, you know, in filming.”
Now that he’s not shooting, he’s back to his regular diet.
“Now I'm 194, kind of hanging around there. I'm 20 pounds heavier. So, have I been eating? Absolutely.” [laughs]
Ultimately, Watkins wanted to do justice to Ali’s legacy in every conceivable way. This series is not just a standard history lesson. It serves as a timely reminder of what it actually means to stand firm in your personal convictions during turbulent times.
"Muhammad Ali, even at a young age, seemed to have this understanding that the thing that mattered the most was standing by what you believe and standing up for what you believe and not just for yourself, but for other people," Watkins says. "He connected people even when they disagreed with him. And I think it's because he didn't lie. And he didn't compromise. And so even if you disagreed with him, you respected him.”
The Greatest is available to stream on Prime.
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