*EUR caught up with comedian Kevin Hart to discuss his process for preparing to play Chicken Man in the thrilling new Peacock series “Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist.”
Inspired by the true events surrounding Muhammad Ali’s iconic 1970 comeback fight, the series explores one of Atlanta’s most notorious heists. Here’s the official synopsis: When a hustler named Chicken Man (Hart) hosts an afterparty to celebrate the fight with a guest list of the country’s wealthiest, the night ends with the most brazen criminal underworld heist in Atlanta’s history. Suspected of masterminding the crime, Chicken Man is hellbent on clearing his name but must convince his old adversary, J.D. Hudson (Don Cheadle), one of the first Black detectives in the city’s desegregated police force, who is tasked with bringing those responsible to justice.
“Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist,” based on the acclaimed iHeart true-crime podcast, follows the infamous story of how the armed robbery transformed Atlanta into the “Black Mecca” and reshaped the city’s criminal underworld.
The ensemble cast includes Samuel L. Jackson (“Frank Moten”), Taraji P. Henson (“Vivian Thomas”), and Terrence Howard (“Cadillac Richie”). The series also features Chloe Bailey (“Lena Mosley”), Marsha Stephanie Blake (“Delores Hudson”), Dexter Darden (“Muhammad Ali”), Lori Harvey (“Lola Falana”), and Sinqua Walls (“McKinley Rogers”).
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In our exclusive interview with Hart, we discussed the intricate layers of Chicken Man and tapped into the emotions driving his quest for redemption.
Hart said, “there’s a little bit of myself in Chicken Man…minus the criminal aspect.”
He added, “I relate to the idea of wanting to do so much, wanting to be responsible for change… and sometimes you bite off a little more than you can chew because your ideas are so big and it’s hard for other people to understand a big idea when they’re not big thinkers. Chicken Man is a big thinker. He’s a big thinker that wants big results,” Hart explained.
“Chicken Man feels like it’s always going to be OK, until it isn’t. This is the first time that Chicken Man has met with a version of it isn’t,” Hart said.
Created by Shaye Ogbonna, Hart serves as an executive producer on the series along with Will Packer and Sabrina Wind for Will Packer Media, as well as Bryan Smiley and Mike Stein for Hartbeat.
Smiley expressed his excitement for viewers to experience the star-studded cast, highlighting the incredible Black star power that brings “Fight Night” to life.
“…we have the most incredible cast, and seeing these phenomenal Oscar-nominated, Emmy-nominated, Tony-nominated performers who all decided that this material was so powerful, they wanted to do it. I’m excited for the audience to watch it and to fall in love with this series,” Smiley told EUR.
Elsewhere in our conversation with Kevin and Bryan break down the show’s historical significance, and what viewers can expect from this high-stakes crime drama. Watch the conversation in the clip below.
The first three episodes of “Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist” debuted September 5 on Peacock with new episodes premiering every Thursday through October 10.
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