Boxer Mike Tyson joins Vijay Deverakonda-starrer Liger

Vijay Deverakonda will take on Mike Tyson, one of the greatest heavyweight boxers of all time, in the upcoming pan-Indian feature Liger (Saala Crossbreed), directed by Puri Jagannadh.

The producers of the film — Jagannadh, Karan Johar and Charmme Kaur — and the star, Deverakonda, revealed their big casting coup.

The former champion had previously made a special appearance in Fool N Final (2007) starring Sunny Deol and Shahid Kapoor.

The infamous sportsman was the undisputed world heavyweight champion from 1987 to 1990. He was convicted and sentenced to six years in prison for rape but was released on parole after three years and returned to boxing. In his now-notorious rematch against Evander Holyfield in June 1997, Tyson was disqualified after he bit off his opponent's ear.

A documentary on his troubled life was premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in 2008; Tyson has made cameos in films like The Hangover (2009) and The Hangover Part II (2011). He was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 2011.

‘Iron Mike’ will feature in Liger in a significant role, going up against Deverakonda's mixed martial arts expert.

The Liger team, in a press release, stated, “For the first time on Indian screens, the man who created history, unbeatable icon, one and only legend the great Mike Tyson is on board for the prestigious and crazy pan-India project Liger (Saala Crossbreed).

Liger’s makers went on to say that the upcoming action film, which is currently being shot in Goa, will also feature many other fighters from overseas. They described their ongoing schedule as “blood sweat violence”.

Vishnu Sarma is Liger’s cinematographer while Thailand’s Kecha is the stunt director.

The upcoming feature also stars Ananya Panday, Ramya Krishnan and Ronit Roy, along with Vishu Reddy, Ali, Makarand Deshpande and Getup Srinu.

Liger is due to be released in theatres in Hindi, Telugu, Tamil, Kannada and Malayalam.