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Liev Schreiber

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Films

Drama: Biographical

BBC One - The Bleeder

The story of boxer Chuck Wepner, whose clash with Muhammad Ali inspired the film Rocky.

The story of New Jersey boxer Chuck Wepner, nicknamed the Bayonne Bleeder, whose bruising 15-round bout with Muhammad Ali in 1975 inspired Sylvester Stallone's film Rocky.

1970s Bayonne, New Jersey. Perhaps past his prime, Chuck Wepner is a part-time prize fighter best known for being able to take punishment in the ring – his nickname is the Bayonne Bleeder. Then opportunity knocks:  the only white heavyweight in the US top 10, he is picked to fight Muhammad Ali. Their bruising 15-round encounter in 1975 brings Chuck wider fame, inspiring the movie Rocky - though Chuck gets paid nothing by the film-makers. By association, Chuck is seen (and sees himself) as a success, but long-suffering wife Phyllis finally tires of his womanising and cocaine habit, throwing him out, while the chance to work with Sylvester Stallone gets frittered away. Then Chuck is caught supplying cocaine in a police sting and sent to jail. After his release, a barmaid he had taken a shine to, Linda, re-enters his life when he is at a low ebb, and together they start afresh.

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