Claressa Shields is considered one of the greatest female boxers of all time, now her story is coming to the screen in the new film The Fire Inside.
Ryan Destiny, best known for her work on Fox music series Star, plays Shields in the authorized biopic about the two-time boxing gold medalist.
Oscar nominee Brian Tyree Henry (Causeway) co-stars as Shields’ tough-love coach, Jason Crutchfield.
Amazon MGM Studios recently released first-look photos from the film. The images show Destiny training and sparring in the ring.
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The film follows the true story of Shields as a high school junior from Flint, Michigan, who becomes the first American woman to win an Olympic gold medal in boxing, according to the official description.
She grew up under difficult circumstances and even after her success in the ring, struggled to make her dreams come true.
“I’m a woman who pushed greatness inside and out of the ring. What I’ve been able to do under the circumstances I was in, it’s a miracle,” Shields, 29, told People magazine last week. “My life story shows you how I blocked out the many noises and doubts to win. To be great. Because my life depended on it.”
Rachel Morrison directs the film from a script written by Oscar winner Barry Jenkins (Moonlight). Jenkins is also one of the film’s. Additional executive producers include Lyn Lucibello Brancatella, Rachel Morrison, Drea Cooper, Zackary Canepari, Sue Jaye Johnson, and Claressa Shields.
The Fire Inside makes its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival this September.
The film arrives in theaters on Dec. 25.
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