Even though they led two separate lifestyles is it fair to say they were opposite images of one another? Amin Joseph (Sonny Liston) and Jaalen Best (Cassius Clay / Muhammad Ali) step into the ring as two of the boxing world’s most iconic characters in The Greatest, an inspiring coming-of-age story, profiling Muhammad Ali and the personal, professional, and political battles he fought inside and outside the ring. Set against a changing America, the series follows a once-in-a-generation talent fighting for the right to become his own man. And another fighting to be respected and recognized.
LISTEN NOW: Jaalen Best and Amin Joseph on 'The Greatest'
Amin and Jaalen sat down with Romeo International to share the parallel factors of the two men that changed the boxing world forever.
Amin Joseph (Sonny Listen)
"Sunny and Cassius were mirrors. They seem like they're on the opposite sides, but... That fight was not a popular fight. It was hard to sell the fight. People don't remember this, but that was a hard fight to sell. You had this loudmouth, young challenger. You had this pariah of a champion that no one wanted. The Black community didn't want to accept him because he wasn't like Joe Lewis, you know? He wasn't like Floyd Patterson that said the right things. He was handled by the mob. He was a felon. And then on this side, you had this loud-mouthed guy. America didn't know what to do with them. I feel like Sonny, you know, to me, Sonny had a lot of shame that came along with his handlers that came along with his past, the traumatic way that he grew up and I feel like he was constantly trying to get that off of him, trying to be what America wanted him to be. And no one would accept him. No one would give him that second chance that redemption. And when he became champion, they acted like he wasn't."
Jaalen Best (Cassius Clay / Muhammad Ali)
"I think it's interesting because with Sonny Liston, you get to see the storyline of someone where the world told him who he was. So a lot of his fight was to prove to himself, who he believed himself to be. And with Ali, he was creating that to the world. He was able to be in a position where he's telling the world who he is and making them believe it or not. So they were really too fighting, at the same time, they're in the same position fighting what could seem like the same cause, but to me, I think they're very different."
The Greatest is now streaming on Prime Video
'The Greatest' is now streaming on Prime Video
'The Greatest' is now streaming on Prime Video
