Biopics are feature films that revolve around the story of a significant real-life figure in history. Biopics have become a more popular subgenre recently as more and more important figures have retired or passed away. One of the most popular biopics are movies about music icons, from Rocketman telling Sir Elton John's story to, most recently, the Aretha Franklin biopic starring Jennifer Hudson, Respect. Respect, in particular, was praised for its overall accuracy, including special praise from Aretha Franklin’s surviving family.
Update September 8, 2023: This list has been updated with even more athletes who deserve their own biopics.
Another popular subgenre is the sports biopic. Throughout film history, there have been numerous sports biopics, from Chariots of Fire and Raging Bull to recent ones like I, Tonya and King Richard. Indeed, some of the most prominent figures in history have been athletes. Whether it's Usain Bolt or Michael Phelps, athletes make an undeniable influence on the public, either through philanthropic means or precisely because of how inspirational their personal stories and accomplishments have been. That said, there are many athletes whose stories deserve to be told on the big screen. Here are athletes who deserve their own biopic (and the actors we think should play them).
10 Jim Brown
Slaughter Productions
Jim Brown was one of the best football players ever, when he decided to retire at the peak of his sports career to become an actor and activist. He played his whole career for the Cleveland Browns, and was one of the best running backs who ever played the game, and he still is the only player in history to average over 100 rushing yards per game for his career (a record that will probably never be broken). He then decided to make history in the acting world, where he was the first Black action hero, and in 100 Rifles he had one of the first interracial love scene in cinema history.
Brown was also interested in social and racial issues during the civil rights movement of the 50s, becoming one of the Black athletes at the Cleveland Summit, supporting Muhammad Ali. The athlete and actor’s life already seems like a movie, so the script almost writes itself. Aldis Hodge (Black Adam) played Jim Brown on the film One Night in Miami, and Brown approved of his performance before his death, so he would be the perfect actor to play him in a film.
9 Gertrude Ederle
The first woman to swim the English channel was Gertrude Ederle. Beating every record before her, Ederle marked history for women everywhere. While she may not have had as many accomplishments as some of the other athletes on this list, Ederle’s success made a huge impact on the world. She first rose to fame in the 1920s when women had to fight to swim without stockings. She trained hard for 10 years and finally made her way to swim the 35 miles of the English Channel in 14.5 hours. Her hard work earned her the nickname of “America’s Best Girl” from President Calvin Coolidge.
While a film has been in the works to tell Trudy’s story, little details have been made concrete about its production or release date. Lily James was originally lined up to play the part of Gertrude Ederle in Young Woman and The Sea, it is now stated, per Game Rant, that Daisy Ridley will play the part. This project has been in the works for many years as it is a story that desperately needs to be told.
8 Shirley Muldowney
Shirley Muldowney is also known as “Cha Cha Muldowney”, and the “First Lady of Drag Racing”, nicknames that already prove why she should get a biopic about her life (Bonnie Bedelia did a TV movie about her, but her story deserves to be told in the big screen). She was the first female member of the Auto Racing All-American team, and has won many, many racing competitions, being named one of the Top 25 Drivers of All Time. She met resistance every step of the way, with men telling her racing was no place for women. She did it anyway and won.
Her story also has a dark moment, as she had a very bad crush in 1984 where she crushed her legs, pelvis, and hands, needing 18 months of physical therapy to recover. Even then, she came back and kept winning. Her story has everything for a film, it’s an underdog story, one where she goes against every man who thinks she shouldn’t be doing this, and the accident could be used as a dramatic moment to up the stakes during the film, making for a great crowd-pleasing ending. Muldowney always wanted Jamie Lee Curtis to play her, but she’s too old now, but Shailene Woodley could make her and her story come to life, and make it even Academy Award-worthy.
7 Sugar Ray Robinson
Considered the G.O.A.T in boxin, Sugar Ray Robinson had a ground-breaking record of 128-1-2. Robinson became one of the first Black athletes to establish himself outside of his athletics, becoming an embodiment of Black masculinity. Robinson basically invented the sports entourage and famously drove an obnoxious pink Cadillac, but his fortune did not last. Robinson retired broke, spending his lifetime earnings while struggling to find a new career to support himself.
On top of his late-life struggles with diabetes and Alzheimer's, the boxer never was able to return to his former glory and died in poverty in 1989. Robinson’s story deserves to be told and who better to play the boxer than Michael B. Jordan, who currently stars in theCreed franchise and is no stranger to the boxing world.
6 Alice Marble
Wimbledon champion at the beginning of the 20th century, Alice Marble made the cover of TIME magazine as the Associated Press Athlete of the Year. When WWII broke out, Marble’s focus moved away from Wimbledon and instead turned towards comic books, specifically being the creator of the Wonder Women comic series, showcasing important women in history. Marble was not without suffering as she experienced a miscarriage and lost her husband to the War, after which she attempted suicide. During her recovery, she was approached to become a spy on former lover Hans Steinmetz who had stolen art for the Nazis.
Unfortunately, Marble’s efforts came to naught as her American contact was a double agent who shot her in the back. After her recovery, she returned to tennis, especially keen on ending racial segregation in tennis, allowing Althea Gibson to compete. The perfect actor to take on this part would be Jessica Chastain, who has proven adept in the spy film genre and playing real people, having recently won an Oscar for Best Actress playing Tammy Faye in The Eyes of Tammy Faye.
5 Baron Gottfried von Cramm
Baron Gottfried von Cramm was a German tennis player, a baron, a gay man, and a national hero, at least until Nazism became Germany’s governing body. Von Cramm won two French Opens during the thirties, and was number one in the world in 1937. Although he didn’t say it out loud, it was a known fact that he was gay, even when he was married to a woman. All these things, and the fact that he openly didn’t like being a symbol for the Nazis, made him a possible enemy of the regime, if he started losing.
When von Cramm lost a Davis Cup game against American Don Budge, he was detained by Gestapo agents upon his arrival to Germany, accused of sex irregularities, and sentenced to one year in prison, where he served 6 months. After that, he went to fight in World War II, where he was dishonorably discharged. And after that, he came back to tennis and still won some tournaments. Nazis, queer romance, tennis, World War II, the biggest question is how von Cramm doesn’t have a biopic already, as his life well deserves it. About who should play him, the best choice would be Josh O’Connor (The Crown), who has already shot a Tennis film in Challengers, and would also be able to show all the range, and emotions in von Cramm’s story.
4 Ted Williams
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Ted Williams AKA the Splendid Splinter was a baseball legend. Williams enlisted as a Marine pilot after a Triple Crown year. While awaiting orders to join fighting in the Pacific, WWII came to an abrupt end. After three seasons away from the diamond, Williams returned as a part of the Red Sox and picked up another Triple Crown, numerous MVP awards, and an All-Star Game appearance in the next six seasons at which point he was called out to serve in the Korean War, flying 39 combat missions, becoming a decorated soldier. After his service, he returned to baseball and performed as an All-Star.
On top of this, Williams was often fined for obscene remarks and gestures on the diamond and was even deprived of the MVP award one year because of his behavior. One interesting aspect of this athlete’s life was that after his death, he was decapitated by surgeons and had his body cryogenically frozen. Needless to say, Williams' story would make for an intriguing biopic with Jeffrey Dean Morgan starring as Williams.
3 Andre The Giant
André Roussimoff, also known as André The Giant was a professional wrestler and actor. He had gigantism caused by excess growth hormones, and he became one of the first charismatic wrestlers, defeating Hulk Hogan in 1998 to become the WWF Champion. His acting career started in America playing Sasquatch in a double episode of the TV series The Six Million Dollar Man, but his most known and remembered role was as Fezzik in The Princess Bride (his own favorite role). Roussimoff’s life was a different one than most, as many people saw him as some kind of freak, and yet he was a gentle soul, and one of the most generous people writer William Goldman (who wrote the novel that became The Princess Bride) ever met.
His gigantism also made him have many health issues, including dying at 46 from congestive heart failure. His story would make a great biopic, and seeing as he was a wrestler and actor, the best actor to play him would be John Cena. There should be some Lord of the Rings kind of camera tricks to make him look bigger than everyone around him, but he could play the role, and his earnestness perfectly.
2 Jackie Joyner-Kersee
Retired track and field athlete Jacqueline Joyner-Kersee is considered one of the greatest heptathlon and long jump athletes of all time. Participating in four Olympics and winning six medals, Kersee is considered the greatest female athlete of the 20th Century. Growing up in East St.Louis, Kersee was met with a great deal of adversity, including many deaths within her family, but found solace in academics and sports.
She broke many records and even managed to evade the drug scandals that plagued the Olympic track and field athletes during the 1980s, while also being one of the first professional athletes with asthma. A Jackie Joyner-Kersee biopic would be a great addition to the genre, featuring a strong Black female lead who could potentially be played by rising star Keke Palmer.
1 Bill Walton
Bill Walton’s story is one that is not easily forgotten. In his early years, Walton was a UCLA undergrad who hung out with radicals opposing the Vietnam war at the time and would often participate in sit-ins. Walton became an NBA champion who led the Trail Blazers to victory in 1976-77. After a long series of injuries, Walton missed a number of games before making a comeback and taking home the title of Sixth Man of the Year.
Walton suffered from a stutter all his life, but despite this, he still became a broadcaster for close to 20 years, not to mention the unbearable back pain that led him to consider suicide on a number of occasions. Bill Walton’s story has much to offer for a potential biopic with Michael Fassbender taking on the role.