New Uppercut Image Offers a Closer Look at Ving Rhames' Character in the 2025 Boxing Drama Film

A new image shows Ving Rhames' character in Uppercut. The upcoming 2025 sports drama was written and directed by Torsten Ruether, remaking his 2021 film Leberhaken and transplanting the setting from Berlin to New York City. Original star Luise Großmann reprises her role as Toni, who is now a German immigrant in America, an aspiring boxer who is reluctantly trained by the cynical Elliott Duffond (Rhames, who is known for a variety of roles, including starring in the Mission: Impossible films). The film also adds a second timeline following his future career as a boxing manager.

TelaRant now you can share an exclusive first image of Uppercut. The image shows Ving Rhames wearing a hooded sweatshirt and holding what appears to be a baseball while standing outside the boxing ring. It's unclear whether baseball will be used as an unconventional training technique, which harkens back to Mr. Miyagi's unusual approach to martial arts training in The Karate Kid. See the full-size image below:

Ving Rhames is essential for the Uppercut

The film doesn't work without its character

While the main character of Uppercut It's Tony, Ving Rhames' supporting role is essential to his success. Over the years, inspirational sports films have utilized his coach character – and especially that character's relationship to the sport – to drive the film's overall emotional arc and the young hopefuls under his tutelage. Although some of these characters are protagonists, in films like The way backthey are equally important when the main character of the film is the aspiring champion and not the trainer.

From Mr. Miyagi (Pat Morita) on Karate Kid franchise for Coach Boone (Denzel Washington) in Remember the Titans, These characters have become some of the most iconic in cinema. Thanks to being brought to life by a famous actor like Rhames, Elliott Duffond could eventually join their ranks. This image, which sees him becoming more encouraging, though no less rude, seems to suggest that Duffond has quite an arc as he learns to embrace the love for the sport he has long lost, something that could help cement him in the pantheon.

Uppercut release can be perfectly timed

There's been a recent boom in inspirational sports dramas

Uppercut may be perfectly poised to take advantage of the recent boom in inspirational sports dramas. Christmas Day sees the launch of the buzzy The Fire Withina biopic that follows a young boxer on the rise in Flint, Michigan. This will be followed in January by the Prime Video debut of Unstoppablewhich adapts the real-life story of a champion wrestler with one leg. The fact that Leberhaken remake arriving in February means that the public's appetite may already be whetted for this type of storyand greater interest could be generated by Rhames' presence.