Tyson accuses Hulu of stealing his 'life story'

Former American boxing champion Mike Tyson accused the upcoming series on the entertainment platform "Hulu", which deals with his autobiography, of "stealing the story of my life", and compared the platform to a "slave dealer".

The new drama series entitled "Mike", which will be shown for the first time on the 25th of this month on Hulu, deals with the life of the former heavyweight world champion, starting from his childhood and passing through his achievements in the rings and ending with his conviction for rape in 1992. Tyson criticized on his Instagram page the upcoming series, saying, " They stole my life story and didn't pay me."

"For Hulu executives, I'm just a (slave) they can auction off," he added, using stars instead of letters to denote slave. The US-only platform is majority-owned by Disney.

One episode of the eight-part series will focus on the viewpoint of former beauty queen Desiree Washington, who was accused at the age of 18 of Tyson of raping her in 1991. The former boxing star was convicted the following year and spent three years in prison.

In contrast, "Mike" creator and screenwriter Stephen Rodgers claimed he was not "able to discuss" with Tyson due to work on another project that had "the rights" to publish his life story.

"I don't like relying on one source," he said, defending the series, which was produced without the former heavyweight champion's approval.


In addition to evoking the accusations of domestic violence weighing on Tyson, the series also chronicles the star's abuse as a child, the loss of his mother to cancer when he was a teenager, as well as his drug addiction and mental health issues.

"I wish if he watched (the series) he'd change his mind," Rodgers concluded.

Tyson, who was born in Brooklyn, made his name as one of the most prominent boxers in history, after becoming the youngest heavyweight champion at the age of 20 years and 4 months, and impressed with his strength, piercing punches and ability to beat his opponents by knockout.

One of Tyson's most prominent achievements was his victory in 37 consecutive games in his early days, but his career also witnessed setbacks, including the scandal he sparked after biting the ear of his opponent, Evander Holyfield, during a fight between them in 1997.

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