When the lights go up in cinemas across the UK this week, audiences will be treated to the explosive story of one of Britain’s most flamboyant sporting icons. Giant, the much-anticipated biopic of Prince Naseem “Naz” Hamed, lands in theaters on January 9, 2026, promising a ringside seat to the rags-to-riches journey of a boxer who redefined British featherweight boxing—and the man who helped shape him, trainer Brendan Ingle.
Starring Amir El-Masry as the irrepressible Hamed and Pierce Brosnan as the steadfast Ingle, Giant brings together a cast and crew with serious pedigree. The film’s behind-the-scenes muscle includes none other than Sylvester Stallone, with his Balboa Productions lending a hand as producer—a nod to the film’s aspirations for cinematic greatness (as reported by Scannain and Men's Health UK).
For El-Masry, stepping into the shoes of “Prince” Naseem was no small feat. Before being cast, his fighting experience was limited to boxercise classes rather than the bruising world of professional boxing. To convincingly portray one of the most charismatic and controversial figures in British sports, El-Masry adopted what he described as a “monk-like” mentality, dedicating himself to the role with a focus and discipline that mirrored Hamed’s own rise from humble beginnings to international stardom, according to Men's Health UK.
Giant charts Hamed’s remarkable ascent from the working-class streets of Sheffield to the pinnacle of global boxing. Born in 1974 to Yemeni parents, Hamed was one of eight siblings growing up above a corner shop in Wincobank, a gritty suburb of the steel city. His journey began at age seven, when his father introduced him to boxing and took him to Brendan Ingle’s gym—an old church hall that would become the crucible for his transformation. Ingle, a former steelworker and Irish immigrant, quickly recognized the young Hamed’s potential. “Nobody could touch him,” Ingle once said, recalling how he first saw Hamed fighting back against bullies in the school playground (as quoted by The Independent and BBC).
Under Ingle’s tutelage, Hamed’s talent blossomed. By 20, he was European champion; a year later, he captured the world title, dazzling fans with his showboating, leopard-print trunks, and unforgettable ring entrances—who could forget the time he danced to Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” or floated in on a flying carpet? As boxing journalist Steve Bunce put it, Hamed was “brilliant from the start” and had “poise like a veteran.”
But Giant doesn’t just recount the glories. The film delves into the challenges Hamed faced, not least the racism and Islamophobia of 1980s and 1990s Britain. The official synopsis highlights how the partnership between Hamed and Ingle “propelled them to the top of boxing’s elite and unprecedented levels of global superstardom” against a backdrop of hostility and prejudice (BBC). The film portrays Naseem as a young man with something to prove, using the hate he faced as fuel in the ring. Yet it also explores the complex and sometimes toxic dynamic between Hamed and Ingle. According to Scannain, the movie suggests that Brendan’s methods, and perhaps his own ambitions, may have contributed to the creation of a sporting “monster”—one he ultimately could not control.
As with many biopics, Giant walks a fine line between mythmaking and reality. Some critics argue the film leaves out parts of the story, painting Hamed in a harsher light than necessary and furthering the alter ego he so famously cultivated. Others, like Scannain’s reviewer, felt the production values and fight choreography fell short of the subject’s larger-than-life persona, lamenting, “When you deal with sports films involving these larger-than-life figures, you cannot half-ass it. Unfortunately, Giant did just that.” Still, Pierce Brosnan’s portrayal of Brendan Ingle has been praised for its charm and depth, capturing the trainer’s mix of hope, regret, and resilience.
Hamed’s own career was as dramatic outside the ring as inside it. After a decade of dominance—36 wins and a single defeat—he retired in 2002 at just 28, plagued by hand injuries. “I needed cortisone injections to take away the pain when I fought, then after every fight the gloves would be whipped off and my hands would be as big as balloons. It was getting ridiculous, and you can't go on with no ammunition. I was one of the hardest punchers ever known, but if the hands are quite brittle and you do damage, then it's hard to carry on,” Hamed told BBC 5Live.
The years following retirement weren’t kind. In 2006, Hamed was jailed after crashing his £300,000 sports car, leaving another driver, Anthony Burgin, with severe injuries. He served 16 weeks of a 15-month sentence and was stripped of his MBE. Speaking to reporters outside court, Hamed said, “All I can say basically is my heart goes out to the victim, Mr Burgin, and his family. I've just served nearly a four-month sentence in jail and not seeing my newborn baby, the birth of my newborn baby, what can I say, you know, it's been hard, but thank God nobody's died.”
Yet the Hamed legacy endures. His sons, Aadam and Sami, have followed in his footsteps, both becoming professional boxers and sharing their own journeys in the BBC documentary Born to Brawl.
The relationship between Hamed and Ingle, so central to both their lives, unraveled in 1997. Ingle later reflected, “I sacked myself, let's get that clear. I could have continued with Naz and made more money. I'm not a mercenary.” He told the BBC in 2009 that Hamed “never reached his potential,” adding, “What he could have done would have been just amazing... But money does strange things to people. If I was 21 and had £2-3 million, I don't know what would happen.”
Brendan Ingle died in 2018 at age 77, following a brain haemorrhage. The Guardian called him “one of the most important men” in British boxing history, with his “single greatest achievement” being his role in shaping Hamed’s career. Hamed himself paid tribute, saying, “During my career, there were times we were inseparable, and I can honestly say that if it were not for Brendan Ingle, I would not have achieved all I did in the sport of boxing. I hope in the years to come, Brendan will be honoured, as I have, in the International Boxing Hall of Fame.”
Whether Giant lives up to the legend of its subject is up for debate, but there’s no question that the story of Prince Naseem Hamed and Brendan Ingle still packs a punch—reminding us that behind every champion is a tale of struggle, ambition, and the complicated ties that bind.
