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As Entourage moves into its final season, Kevin Connolly's character Eric Murphy has evolved from a best friend to the head of his own managerial company. In real life, Connolly himself has also used the show to evolve. He went from an actor and sometimes TV director to full on feature film director with 2007's Gardener of Eden. Once Entourage finishes this summer, he's hoping to direct a feature film about Kimbo Slice.
Who is Kimbo Slice? One of the first YouTube sensations (yes, even before Justin Bieber) who was videotaped fighting in backyards before becoming a household name and headlining Mixed Martial Arts shows for multiple organizations. According to Connolly, there's a screenplay dramatizing Slice's life already written and he's looking for funding. Read more after the jump.
The Wrap [1] spoke with Connolly about the project:
I'm trying to get the Kimbo Slice story made. I have his life rights, we have a script that's great. It's out and about, and the powers that be are trying to put the money together...Kimbo Slice is known as one of the first YouTube celebrities. He was the first person I ever sat in front of a computer and typed somebody's name into YouTube. His fights ended up on the internet, his backyard fights, and he all of the sudden... became this celebrity.
Here's one of the famous example of Slice's outdoor fights. This probably should be considered NSFW because it's violent.
After getting millions upon millions of views on YouTube, Slice parlayed that fame into fortune by joining Elite XC, an MMA company that folded fairly quickly. He then got a shot in the Ultimate Fighting Championship, paid his dues and gained respect, but realized that he was not as well-rounded as his other competitors. He's now exploring other options.
The film would, of course, have a lot of that but be more about how Slice grew up and eventually lived out of a car, worked as a bouncer, and struggled to make ends meet. Connolly said Slice would probably play himself and gave intimate details to the screenwriter:
It's so personal to sit with a writer who you don't know and tell them your deepest, darkest secrets and your life story, so I think it took him a second to get used to. But him and the writer really hit it off, and I couldn't be happier with the script. I'm ready to go.
Slice certainly has an interesting story and, with films like Hamill and Kevin James's upcoming MMA movie, it's obvious people are starting to see the sport as a jump off point for films. I think Connolly will get this thing done. What about you?
[1] http://www.thewrap.com/tv/article/kevin-connolly-hopes-direct-kimbo-slice-life-story-after-entourage-exclusive-28327
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