Prime Video's Muhammad Ali Biopic 'The Greatest' Doesn't Do the Legend Justice | Review

Image via Prime Video Published Nov 4, 2026, 12:45 AM EST Sign in to your Collider account One of the most anticipated shows coming to Prime Video is The Greatest from executive producer Michael B. Jordan, an official biopic about the former undisputed heavyweight champion of the world, Muhammad Ali. A decade after his death at the age of 74, his career, charisma, and advocacy still fascinate generations of fans. Sports dramas have provided numerous hits on streaming, with docuseries like FX's Welcome to Wrexham and Netflix's Drive to Survive racing up the charts alongside fictional offerings like Apple TV's Ted Lasso. Can Prime Video create another hit with arguably the most compelling life story in sports history? What Is ‘The Greatest’ About? The Prime Video series portrays the life of Ali, then known as Cassius Clay (Jaalen Best), from his breakthrough fight at the Rome Olympics in 1960 to his pivotal 1964 championship bout with Sonny Liston (Amin Joseph). Fighting through a tempestuous relationship with his father, Cassius Sr. (Omari Hardwick), racial prejudice, and talented competition, he forges a path that makes himone of the most important athletes of the 20th century. The narrative is framed around Ali's relationship with his family, as well as his growing connection with civil rights leader Malcolm X (Michael Ealy). The series is produced by Amazon MGM Studios in collaboration with Muhammad Ali’s estate, with his widow Lonnie serving as executive producer alongside Oscar winner Jordan, and was created by Ben Watkins, the showrunner of the Prime Video series Cross. It’s the first fully authorized scripted television series based on the champion’s life, and while it only focuses on the early years of his career, it’s reasonable to assume future seasons would feature him at the height of his fame. ‘The Greatest’ Dramatizes the Many Challenges of Muhammad Ali’s Life Image via Prime Video What The Greatest does well is highlight the opponents Ali faced outside the ring. Set in the racially segregated South, the young boxer is heralded by white dignitaries for his achievements at the Olympics, but reminded through several hurtful remarks and gestures that he is still viewed as inferior by the people of his hometown. The young man, initially wearing his gold medal proudly, is driven to despair as he realizes the bigotry that still lies in plain sight. It’s a powerful reminder of what he faced, even if the point is hammered home indelicately. One interesting twist is the use of contemporary music in many scenes, presumably due to the show being partly produced by Jay-Z’s Roc Nation. The narrative device yields mixed results, working well when looking at the boxing side of his life but occasionally feeling out of place elsewhere. The boxing footage is, as you would hope, well-choreographed and dramatic, creating a stage on which Ali would become its brightest star. ‘The Greatest’ Isn’t as Compelling as Other Works About Ali Many biopics about great creatives have run into the problem of their subject’s life not being as exciting as their work. The Greatest has the opposite issue — Ali’s life was filled with legendary moments, captured on camera at the time and examined by some of the most talented filmmakers of all time. Michael Mann directed the 2001 film Ali with Will Smith, made with Ali’s blessing, while documentaries like When We Were Kings and miniseries Muhammad Ali: The Whole Story brought archive footage to life. Ali even starred in his own biopic, also called The Greatest, in 1977. In short, there have been hours of TV and cinema devoted to his story, and The Greatest suffers by comparison. The script borders on melodrama, delivering a surface-level retelling of events but never quite letting the viewer in on the inner workings of Ali’s or his family's minds. Moments that should have been jaw-dropping drama, such as the refusal of service at a restaurant that leads to Ali throwing his gold medal in the river, feel clinical and devoid of tension. The episodes plod along a familiar biopic path, which feels like a crime when talking about a story as unique as this. COLLIDERInteractive Mission live Movies/Action/Partner Assignment Collider · Action Heroes Which Action Hero Would BeYour Perfect Partner? Ten questions · five legends · one partner Five legends. Five completely different ways of getting out alive: with style, with muscle, with charm, with luck, or with a plan so intricate it probably should not work. Ten questions will reveal which action hero was built to have your back. Choose your channel Rambo James Bond Indiana Jones John McClane Ethan Hunt Find your partner Mission clock00:10 remaining Question 01 of 10THE MISSION 01 You are dropped into a dangerous situation with no warning. What do you need most from a partner? The first few seconds tell you everything about who belongs beside you. ASomeone who already has three contingency plans running and is calmly working through all of them. BSomeone who reads the terrain by instinct and knows exactly how to use it against the enemy. CSomeone who keeps their nerve and their sense of humor while everything falls apart. DSomeone who knows the history of wherever we are and what we are walking into. ESomeone with the right contact, the right cover identity and the right exit already arranged. ← Back Keys 1 to 5 or A to E · Enter to advance Next question Mission clock00:09 remaining Question 02 of 10TRAVEL STYLE 02 You have to get somewhere dangerous, fast. How do you travel? How you get there is half the mission. AOn foot through terrain nobody else would attempt. I move where vehicles cannot follow. BOn a motorcycle, a cargo plane, or anything that gets me there before I think too hard about it. CIn something that belongs to someone else: borrowed, stolen, or improvised under fire. DFirst class, with a cover identity and a gadget I will not explain until it is needed. EBy whatever is available. I have driven, flown, and once arrived by camel. The destination matters, not the method. ← Back Keys 1 to 5 or A to E · Enter to advance Next question Mission clock00:08 remaining Question 03 of 10UNDER PRESSURE 03 You are cornered and outnumbered. What does your ideal partner do? This is when you find out what somebody is really made of. ADisappears into the environment, comes around behind them, and has it finished before I have moved. BCracks a one-liner, grabs a fire extinguisher or a chair, and improvises something that somehow works. CProduces a gadget designed for this exact scenario and uses it with infuriating precision. DPulls out a whip, a bluff and an archaeological insight that somehow gets us out alive. EShuts it down with maximum efficiency and minimum words. They were already three moves ahead. ← Back Keys 1 to 5 or A to E · Enter to advance Next question Mission clock00:07 remaining Question 04 of 10DOWNTIME 04 The mission is paused. You have one evening to decompress. What does your partner suggest? Who somebody is when the pressure drops is who they really are. AThe finest restaurant in the city, a bottle of something expensive, and a conversation that is equal parts brilliant and exhausting. BA local dig site, a museum after hours, or a long story about why that one artifact matters to human civilization. CPizza. Bad TV. Falling asleep halfway through a film neither of you was watching anyway. DA bar with terrible lighting, cold beer, and absolutely no questions about feelings. EA debrief that turns into three hours of contingency planning and somehow becomes the most fun you have had all week. ← Back Keys 1 to 5 or A to E · Enter to advance Next question Mission clock00:06 remaining Question 05 of 10COMMUNICATION 05 How do you want your partner to communicate mid-mission? Good communication is the difference between a partner and a liability. APrecise and minimal. Tell me what I need and nothing else. Every word has a cost. BDeadpan and dry. Keeping it light keeps me sharp, even when everything is on fire. CEnthusiastic and slightly chaotic, but always with useful information buried in the noise. DCalm and controlled through an earpiece, with a plan covering every variable I have not thought of yet. EBarely at all. Silence is a language and they speak it fluently. ← Back Keys 1 to 5 or A to E · Enter to advance Next question Mission clock00:05 remaining Question 06 of 10THE VILLAIN 06 Your enemy is powerful, well-resourced and holds the upper hand. How should your partner go at them? The approach to the enemy defines the partnership. AInfiltrate the inner circle, learn everything, and take them apart from inside before they know we are there. BStudy the historical pattern. Every villain of this type has a weakness written down somewhere in the past. CGet them talking. The longer they monologue, the more time I have to work out how to beat them. DGo straight at them, directly, using every inch of the terrain. EFind the one thing they have not accounted for, because there is always one, and make sure we are holding it. ← Back Keys 1 to 5 or A to E · Enter to advance Next question Mission clock00:04 remaining Question 07 of 10LOYALTY 07 It goes badly wrong and you are stranded somewhere hostile. What do you trust your partner to do? Who somebody is when you need them most is the only thing that counts. ACome in alone, quietly, and get me out before anybody knows they were there. BHave been working the extraction since the moment I vanished. The plan is already running. CCome in loud, come in fast, and worry about the collateral damage later. I would do the same for them. DUse every resource, every contact, and bend every rule until I am out. They do not leave people behind. ECharm their way in somehow, bluff through the hard part, and still manage to look good doing it. ← Back Keys 1 to 5 or A to E · Enter to advance Next question Mission clock00:03 remaining Question 08 of 10TOOLKIT 08 What does your ideal partner bring that you could not replace? A great partner fills the gap you did not know you had. ATechnology that should not exist yet and the training to use it in any conditions. BSurvival instinct so refined it borders on supernatural, and the scars that prove it has been tested. CKnowledge of history, language and culture that makes them priceless where force is useless. DThe ability to walk into any room on earth and immediately become the most trusted person in it. EStubbornness that will not accept a situation is hopeless, and the improvisation to back it up. ← Back Keys 1 to 5 or A to E · Enter to advance Next question Mission clock00:02 remaining Question 09 of 10THE COST 09 Every partnership has a cost. Which of these can you live with? Nobody comes without baggage. The question is whether you can carry it together. AA partner who never fully switches off, always watching exits and counting threats, even at dinner. BA partner who does the job brilliantly and has the emotional availability of a locked filing cabinet. CA partner who makes everything ten times more complicated than it needs to be, and always comes through. DA partner who gets personally attached to every relic and ruin we pass, which slows the whole thing down. EA partner who was never built for this and knows it, but turns up anyway, every time, unasked. ← Back Keys 1 to 5 or A to E · Enter to advance Next question Mission clock00:01 remaining Question 10 of 10THE LAST STAND 10 Final moment. Everything is on the line. What do you need from your partner right now? The last question is the most honest one. AOne line. Absolutely dry. Delivered like the world is not ending. Then we move. BNothing said at all. Just a look that means you both already know what happens next. CA plan I do not fully understand that somehow accounts for everything, laid out in thirty seconds. DA piece of historical context that reframes the whole situation and says exactly what to do. ESomebody who steps forward instead of back, because that is who they have always been. ← Back Keys 1 to 5 or A to E · Enter to advance Reveal my partner Partner assignedYour perfect partner is Olive channel locked Rambo The 1982 original You will never need to ask whether he has your back. You will just know. Your partner does not talk much, does not need to, and will have counted every threat around you before you finish your first sentence. John Rambo is not a man of plans or politics. He is a force shaped by survival, loyalty and an endurance that no amount of training produces on its own. He does not leave people behind. What you get is the most quietly ferocious partner imaginable, somebody who went through what would have broken anybody else and decided to keep going. Why he is your partner He reads ground the way other people read a room. He will stand between you and the worst of it without discussing it. He says almost nothing, and never the wrong thing. From the Collider file The 1982 original came from David Morrell's 1972 novel, which ends very differently. Stallone cut most of his own dialogue in the edit to make the character nearly silent. Five films across thirty-seven years, from 1982 to the fifth in 2019. Says little Leaves nobody Built to endure Gold channel locked James Bond Dr. No, 1962 He has survived things that have no business being survivable, and he does it with style. Your partner arrives perfectly dressed, perfectly briefed, and with a cover story convincing enough that you will need a moment to recall what is true. Bond is the most professionally dangerous person in any room he walks into and the most disarmingly charming, which is the whole point. He works in layers, where nothing is what it looks like and every advantage gets used without apology. You will never be bored. You will occasionally be furious. Why he is your partner He is better in the room than he is on paper, and he is excellent on paper. He will not explain the plan, and the plan will work. He treats charm as a tool, and it is a remarkably effective one. From the Collider file Eon has made twenty-five Bond films since Dr. No in 1962, across six actors. Denis Villeneuve is directing the next one for Amazon MGM, which took creative control in 2025. The search for the new 007 was still running through 2026, with screen tests under way. Charm as a tool Always briefed Unbothered Tan channel locked Indiana Jones Raiders of the Lost Ark, 1981 A scholar's eye and a brawler's instinct, which is an unusual pairing and a very effective one. Your partner knows the history, the language, the cultural context, and exactly why the thing everyone else is ignoring is the most important object in the room. Indiana Jones is brilliant, reckless and occasionally impossible, and also one of the most genuinely resourceful people you could have beside you. He hates snakes and gets attached to objects of historical significance, both of which will slow you down at least once. It will not matter. Why he is your partner He has read the thing nobody else thought to read. He will risk the whole plan for the artifact, and be right about half the time. He improvises better than most people prepare. From the Collider file The Cairo swordsman scene was improvised on the day because Harrison Ford had dysentery. Raiders was filmed in about 73 days, which was fast even in 1981. Dial of Destiny in 2023 was Ford's fifth and last outing, at the age of eighty. Knows the history Reckless scholar Improviser Red channel locked John McClane Die Hard, 1988 His superpower is stubbornness and his contingency plan is improvisation. Your partner was not supposed to be here. He does not have the right equipment, the right information, or anything resembling the right odds. He has a sarcastic remark and a flat refusal to accept that the situation is as bad as it plainly is. John McClane is the great accidental hero of action cinema, a man whose capacity to absorb more than anybody should and keep going would be alarming if it were not so useful. He will complain the entire time. He will come through. Why he is your partner He turns whatever is in the room to his advantage. He is funniest when things are at their worst. He has never once agreed that it is over. From the Collider file Die Hard came from Roderick Thorp's novel Nothing Lasts Forever, a sequel to a book filmed in 1968. Nakatomi Plaza is Fox Plaza, which was the studio's own headquarters at the time. Bruce Willis was a television comedy actor then, and a long way down the casting list. Pure stubbornness Improvises Complains throughout Blue channel locked Ethan Hunt Mission: Impossible, 1996 The mission will be impossible. He will complete it anyway. Your partner has run seventeen scenarios before you finished the briefing, and the one he settled on involves at least two things that should not be physically possible. Ethan Hunt works at the outer edge of human capability, technically and physically, and he brings the same relentless precision to protecting his partners that he brings to dismantling organizations that should not exist. He is not easy to know and he will never tell you everything. He will carry the weight anyway. Why he is your partner He takes the risk himself rather than assigning it. He is three moves ahead and will not say which three. He treats your survival as the actual objective. From the Collider file Cruise hung off the side of an Airbus A400M at a thousand feet for the opening of Rogue Nation. The HALO jump in Fallout took 106 takes, filmed at dusk for the light. The Final Reckoning in 2025 was the eighth film, and was sold as the last. Takes the risk Never explains Finishes it Field report · your top three 1 2 3 ↻ Retake the quiz Copied to your clipboard Mission filed byCOLLIDERCollider.com · The Movies Desk Jaalen Best Looks and Sounds Like the Great Man, but There’s Something Missing Image via Prime Video It’s a thankless task to play one of sports history's most iconic figures, particularly one known for being such a showman. Jaalen Best does a solid job, not least through his physical transformation, mimicking Ali’s cadence and bravado while also portraying the shy young man behind the scenes. What prevents it from being a truly remarkable performance is the shallow material that breaks down Ali's life into a series of confrontations and montages rather than allowing a peek into the mentality of a boxing great. Elsewhere in the cast, Hardwick has some compelling moments as a man struggling to reconcile with his son achieving the greatness he wanted, while Quentin Tarantino collaborator Dana Gourrier brings heart to the story as Ali’s mother, Odessa “Bird” Clay. Joseph, best known for the hit show Snowfall, is impressive as Sonny Liston, depicting the lesser-known story of his path to glory as well as his tender romance with his wife, Geraldine (Erica Tazel). Ealy and Giovanni Ribisi make notable appearances as Malcolm X and trainer Angelo Dundee, respectively, but their star power can’t elevate something that should have you on the edge of your seat. While authorized biopics have an air of authenticity, they can also lead to a project that plays things a little too safe. The Greatest never quite captures the excitement of the man it portrays, nor does the behind-the-scenes drama feel like much more than a detailed Wikipedia entry. Despite some interesting flourishes, what should have been a gripping tale of genius turns into a by-the-numbers biopic that has been told much better elsewhere. The Greatest premieres November 4 on Prime Video. Release Date November 4, 2026 Network Prime Video Showrunner Ben Watkins Directors Stacey Muhammad, Craig Siebels, Ben Watkins Writers Ben Watkins, Jeff Augustin, Aiyana White, Blaize Ali-Watkins, Chris Erric Maddox, Maria Warith-Wade Cast Lacey Creighton Stenographer The Greatest is an intimate exploration of the legendary life of Muhammad Ali, examining his victories and defeats within the boxing ring and his personal journey outside the spotlight as a man, husband, father, brother, and son. Pros & Cons The series outlines the societal struggles Ali faced. Jaalen Best delivers a solid performance. The script never gets beneath the surface. The show doesn?t take any risks artistically or with its plot. Best doesn?t get to explore the man behind the headlines.