With Wimbledon in full swing, new momentum is building behind the long-awaited biopic on tennis legend and civil rights icon Arthur Ashe. Filmmaker Elegance Bratton is in talks to direct the feature, which is being developed by Ashok Amritraj’s Hyde Park Entertainment Group in partnership with Skydance Sports.
As previously announced, BlacKkKlansman Oscar-winning writer Kevin Willmott is penning the script.
The project is a personal one for Amritraj, a former tennis pro himself, and comes with the full backing of the Arthur Ashe Estate. Producers include Ashok Amritraj and Priya Amritraj for Hyde Park, with Chester Algernal Gordon producing through Freedom Principle. Executive producers are Jeanne Moutoussamy-Ashe and Alexandra Dell.
The film will chronicle Ashe’s extraordinary journey—from practicing on public courts in Richmond, Virginia, to becoming the only Black man to win Wimbledon and the U.S. Open. His story unfolds against the turbulent backdrop of the late 1960s, touching on major cultural flashpoints such as the civil rights movement, the assassinations of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert Kennedy, and Ashe’s own bold activism, including his vocal stance against apartheid in South Africa.
Bratton made his feature directorial debut with The Inspection, which premiered at the 2022 Toronto International Film Festival and was released by A24. The film, starring Jeremy Pope, Gabrielle Union, and Bokeem Woodbine, received widespread critical acclaim. He recently wrapped directing the crime thriller By Any Means, starring Mark Wahlberg, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Giancarlo Esposito, and Josh Lucas.
Hyde Park’s film slate includes the English-language remake of Audition with Focus Features, a film adaptation of Richard Wright’s The Man Who Lived Underground written by Kenya Barris, and Hip Hop Cop, a TV series follow-up to BlacKkKlansman, created by Willmott and directed by Anthony Hemingway.
Skydance Sports, known for Air and the Emmy-nominated Good Rivals, continues to expand its presence across scripted and unscripted formats. Upcoming projects include Netflix’s WWE: Unreal, a docuseries on Rafael Nadal, Elway, and a feature on NFL player John Tuggle. Their growing slate spans partnerships with the NFL, Prime Video, ESPN, and Apple TV+, including a docuseries on WNBA legend Diana Taurasi and the University of Connecticut women’s basketball team.
As development progresses, the Arthur Ashe biopic promises to be an inspiring and timely portrayal of a true American icon whose impact reached far beyond the court.