EXCLUSIVE: Amidst the excitement of Wimbledon, exciting news emerges about one of its legends. Skydance Sports is teaming up with Ashok Amritraj’s Hyde Park Entertainment Group to produce a biopic focusing on Wimbledon champion and civil rights advocate Arthur Ashe. The Inspection and By Any Means director Elegance Bratton is in discussions to direct the film.
As previously reported by Deadline, BlacKkKlansman Oscar winner Kevin Willmott is already attached as the screenwriter.
The production of the Ashe biopic is a project that Amritraj deeply resonates with, given his background as a former tennis professional. Hyde Park has secured full backing from the Arthur Ashe Estate while working on this endeavor. Producing for Hyde Park are Ashok Amritraj and Priya Amritraj, while Chester Algernal Gordon is involved through his company, Freedom Principle. The executive producers include Jeanne Moutoussamy-Ashe and Alexandra Dell.
Ashe’s remarkable journey starts on the public courts of Richmond, Virginia, culminating in him becoming the only Black man to win both Wimbledon and the U.S. Open and achieving the No. 1 ranking in the world. The year 1968, when he claimed the U.S. Open title, was a turbulent time in American history, marked by significant events such as the assassinations of Robert Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr., as well as the civil rights movement. Ashe carved out his unique position during this transformative period, actively supporting anti-apartheid efforts in South Africa.
Jersey City, NJ native Bratton honed his filmmaking skills in the 2010s, writing, directing, and producing a variety of projects, including the short film Walk for Me and the reality series My House. His feature debut, The Inspection, which follows a young gay Black man’s enlistment in the Marines, premiered at the 2022 Toronto Film Festival and was released by A24, starring Jeremy Pope and Gabrielle Union.
Recently, Bratton completed the crime thriller By Any Means, featuring actors like Mark Wahlberg and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II. Hyde Park’s films have collectively grossed over $2 billion and their current lineup includes various intriguing projects, from an English-language remake of the cult classic Audition to a film based on Richard Wright’s novel The Man Who Lived Underground.
