MOVIES

Howard Cosell, Don King are ringside in 'Hands of Stone'

Bryan Alexander
USA TODAY
Robb Skyler (from front left) as Howard Cosell, Edgar Rami’rez as Roberto Duran and Reg E. Cathey as Don King in 'Hands of Stone.'

Hands of Stone centers on boxing legends Roberto Duran (Edgar Ramirez) and Sugar Ray Leonard (Usher) and famed trainer Ray Arcel (Robert De Niro).

But the true-life fight drama (in theaters Friday) also depicts a wide world of sports-related figures from the 1980s — from the late, great announcer Howard Cosell to promoter Don King.

"Casting these were some of the biggest challenges about this movie," says director Jonathan Jakubowicz. "These are legendary characters, and people can go to YouTube to watch these fights and see the real people. So we had to get these right."

Robb Skyler as Howard Cosell in 'Hands of Stone.'

HOWARD COSELL (played by Robb Skyler)

Skyler provided the ringside voice of the iconic Cosell, who died in 1995. "Cosell’s voice is such a big part of that era," Jakubowicz says.

Character actor Skyler (memorable as Ben Stiller's "Sasquatch" basketball foe in 2004's Along Came Polly) enhanced the resemblance for his audition, rocking the formidable hairpiece and Cosell's vintage yellow Wide World of Sports jacket look.

"It was Robb's life dream to play Howard Cosell. We were lucky to find him," Jakubowicz says. "Robb was walking into the audition with the jacket and the hair; Cosell's grandson was walking out and freaked out. It was like Cosell was there."

Usher shows sweet moves as Sugar Ray Leonard in 'Hands of Stone'

Reg E. Cathey as promoter Don King in 'Hands of Stone.'

DON KING (Reg E. Cathey) 

The normally bald Cathey wore a custom-made Don King wild wig to resemble the eccentric fight promoter, now 85. But Jakubowicz was looking for acting pedigree in the casting, which is why he chose the Emmy-winning House of Cards actor.

"We made (Cathey) look a lot like Don King. But it’s more the persona, " Jakubowicz says. "People know the public Don King. But here you see Don King in private, in negotiations, (as) the successful businessman he undoubtedly is."

Charles Middleton as Ray Charles in 'Hands of Stone.'

RAY CHARLES (Charles Middleton) 

Charles' appearance singing America the Beautiful at the Leonard vs. Duran fight on Nov. 25, 1980, was a stirring moment, especially for Leonard, who was named after the singer.

Review: 'Hands of Stone' lacks definitive punch

Jakubowicz went full pro in casting the singing legend: He's played by impersonator Charles Middleton, who performed in Las Vegas' Legends in Concert show (under the stage name Mr. Charles).

"We found (Middleton) in Vegas and took him to Panama to shoot," Jakubowicz says. "He has since passed away. But it's a big testament to Charles that he’s been immortalized as Ray Charles in our movie."