Top 10 Athletes Who Deserve Biopics
With the news that a Tiger Woods biopic is in development at Amazon, this feels like the perfect time to publish this list. Take note that I went ahead and made my pick of who I think should play these athletes (which does mean this list is limited to athlete’s I’m more familiar with). Some of these sports stars may already have films made about them, but I think they deserve another (better) adaptation.
Tiger Woods- Kicking us off is Mr. Eldrick Woods himself. One of the greatest golfers of all time & most famous modern athletes, Tiger has that previously mentioned biopic in the works. I would pick Kelvin Harrison Jr. to play Woods and looking at the side by side, I am very pleased with my pick. Harrison is an actor that I really think is one role away from breaking through into the A-list. He has had supporting roles in ‘Cyrano,’ ‘Elvis,’ ‘The Trial of the Chicago 7,’ and most recently starred as Taka/Scar in ‘Mufasa: The Lion King.’ As far as I know, Harrison is not of Asian descent like Woods, though I can’t think of any black actors that are, so I’ll stick with Harrison.
André the Giant- Another athlete who supposedly has a biopic in the works is André Roussmioff, more commonly known as André the Giant. However, this film was originally announced in 2016 with little news since, so we will see. One of the biggest stars in the history of professional wrestling, André was known for his imposing size (billed at 7’4, 520 lbs), even bigger stories, and a huge pop culture presence. I was curious what the Internet thought so I looked up actors people thought should play the part and the answers were kind of comical. You get a lot of really big people. The names that pop up are Paul Wight (AKA Big Show in WWE), Robert Maillet (AKA Kurrgan in WWE), Kristian Nairn (AKA Hodor in Game of Thrones), & Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson (AKA The Mountain in Game of Thrones). Also Jason Segel which is a hilarious thought. I would go a different direction and cast Vinnie Jones. Jones is actually both too short (6’1) & too old (currently 60, André himself passed at 46), but those are both minor hurdles in 2025. I think he has the right look facially & has proved himself as a legitimate actor.
Jim Thorpe- My fellow Oklahoman, Jim Thorpe has actually had a biopic previously made where he was played by Burt Lancaster in 1951. I have vague memories of watching this movie with my dad when I was a kid. Thorpe is an athletic icon deserving of a modern adaptation though, as he was an Olympic Gold Medalist in athletics and played basketball, baseball, & football at the professional level. Thorpe was a Native American icon & the most influential athlete of the first half of the 20th century. Thorpe was the first president of what is now the NFL & also appeared in several films. I think it is crucially important to get a Native American actor in this role & I would go with Martin Sensmeier, known for TV roles in ‘Westworld’ & ‘Yellowstone.’
Bill Russell- The winningest player in NBA history with 11 championships to his name, Bill Russell was also so much more than a basketball player. He was a heavily influential member of the Civil Rights Movement & made history several times. He was the first black head coach in the NBA when he became the player coach of his Celtics. He had his #6 retired across the NBA, making him the first player to receive that honor in the league and third person to receive that honor in all of North American sports (after Jackie Robinson’s #42 & Wayne Gretzky’s #99). I would cast the 31 year old David Jonsson in this role who won the 2025 BAFTA Rising Star Award, with roles in ‘Rye Lane’ & ‘Alien: Romulus.’
Ben Johnson & Carl Lewis- Full disclosure, I got this one off Reddit. Track & field has several athletes that I personally think would make interesting subjects of film and there are actually a couple more on this list. I went a different route here and went with one of the more well known ‘feuds’ in sports history. I think this would be an interesting way to get two legends their due while also touching on Johnson’s controversies. I think Lewis would probably be the lead, played by John David Washington, with Daniel Kaluuya’s Johnson playing a supporting, but still important, role.
Florence Griffith Joyner- The fastest woman ever recorded, Flo-Jo is another one of the all-time greats. Griffith Joyner was such a prominent pop culture figure during her iconic, but tragically short life, I think she would make a great candidate for a movie. I personally would cast Naomi Ackie to play her, as Ackie has experience in the biopic genre, playing Whitney Houston in 2022’s ‘I Wanna Dance with Somebody.’
Wayne Gretzky- When you are undoubtedly the GOAT of your sport, and your nickname is literally ‘The Great One’ I think you are probably worthy of the biopic treatment. Gretzky is one of the most iconic athletes of all-time, and when he retired from the NHL in 1999, held over 60 of the league’s records. I would cast Jeremy Allen White in the role, who will be starring as Bruce Springsteen in a biopic this year, but is mostly known for his role on ‘The Bear.’ Also, I can’t even imagine how well this film would do in Canada.
Usain Bolt- When you’re the fastest man in the role & dominate your sport on an Olympic stage, you become one of the most famous people in the world. Bolt became an icon, not only in his home country of Jamaica, but internationally. I think a film where the subject is hands down the best at something & knows it would be so entertaining to watch. I would cast the Jamaican-born English actor Micheal Ward in the role who is a multiple time BAFTA nominee.
Michael Phelps- Speaking of dominating your sport on an Olympic level. Michael Phelps. Enough said right? 28 Olympic medals, 23 of which are gold. I would cast Grant Gustin, of ‘The Flash’ fame in the role which is funny because he is only a few years younger than Phelps is.
Tom Brady- Our final entry is another athlete who dominated his sport for two decades. One of the most well known American athletes of all-time, Tom Brady rose from the 199th draft pick to the greatest player to ever step on a football field. Everyone loves a good underdog story, though Brady’s story very quickly went from underdog to David vs. Goliath (he was Goliath). I would cast Patrick Schwarzenegger in the role, who is very relevant right now due to his role in season 3 of ‘The White Lotus.’
