Rachel McAdams and Jake Gyllenhaal are co-stars of "Southpaw,' a boxing sports drama. The film is about famous all-star champ Billy Hope whose perfect life crumbles when his beautiful wife is killed. He embarks on a journey to restore his family's fortune and to regain his life. The movie releases on Friday, July 31, 2015.
Hope (Gyllenhaal) retires from boxing to drastically shift his focus from his career to his family. His life changes suddenly when his wife Maureen (McAdams) is murdered by a stalker. Hope's life spirals out of control to a point where he loses his daughter Leila to child protection services. Hope re-enters the boxing ring in a plight to get his daughter back.
"Working with him was a great experience because he's so committed and gives his heart. You're going to see in this movie, how far he has come. I asked this guy from day one, "I need you in the gym every day. I need you to train every day.' And I said, "The word is sacrifice," said director Antoine Fuqua referring to Gyllenhaal.
According to Deadline, Gyllenhaal gained 15 pounds of muscle for the role.
Cast members of the film are as follows: Jake Gyllenhaal as Billy Hope, Rachel McAdams as Maureen Hope, Forest Whitaker as Titus "Tick" Wills, Naomi Harris as Angela Rivera, Oona Laurence as Leila Hope, and Miguel Gomez as Miguel "Magic" Cantu. Other actors include Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson, Tyrese Gibson, Rita Ora, and Clare Foley.
"Southpaw' was written by Kurt Sutter and produced by The Weinstein Company. "Southpaw' derived its title from a boxing stance used by left-handed boxers. The storyline was developed by Sutter, who originally intended the film to be a metaphoric sequel to American rapper Eminem's 2002 film "8 Mile.'
