Zack Snyder's New UFC Movie ‘Brawler' Could Have A Star-Studded Cast

Forbes

01-04-2025

A unique fictional story about the UFC is headed to the big screen, and the cast could include familiar faces from film and mixed martial arts.
According to a statement released by Turki Alalshikh, chairman of the General Entertainment Authority in Saudi Arabia and owner of boxing magazine The Ring, acclaimed film director Zack Snyder (Justice League and Rebel Moon) has teamed up with UFC CEO Dana White and Alalshikh to direct Brawler, a new film.
The story is about a man in pursuit of a spot on the UFC's main roster and his journey through the promotion. While the remake of Road House had some ties to the UFC based on Jake Gyllenhaal's character's (Dalton) past—and Conor McGregor served as the primary antagonist—it wasn't a movie about the UFC.
Brawler appears to be a film with a story heavily rooted in the dream of reaching the UFC and the experience associated with the promotion.
As of now, there's been no official news on the cast, but I do not expect to see fighters placed in the key roles of the film. However, I do believe the film will have some noteworthy cameos from people in the UFC stratosphere.
Based on Snyder's history and the UFC's involvement, here are some casting concepts and people to consider.
Take this as nothing more than deep-thought spitballing and fodder for conversation about an exciting film concept.
Fisher has history with Snyder. The 37-year-old from Maryland played Cyborg in Justice League and Darrian Bloodaxe in Rebel Moon. Fisher has already shown his level of commitment to fitness, as he has gotten jacked to play Cyborg and other roles.
Also, Snyder has shown continued support for Fisher, particularly after Joss Whedon took over the original Justice League film and clashed with Fisher.
It would be easy to see Fisher de-aged a bit and placed into the lead role for the film.
While he is 48 years old, Joe Manganiello would seemingly be a strong fit to play an established champion and the man Fisher's character is aiming to face and defeat. Perhaps Manganiello would be a guy who was once a mentor, but has now become an enemy.
There are so many stories of gym drama associated with the UFC to pull from to add a level of familiarity. Team Alpha Male's fallout involving TJ Dillashaw, Cody Garbrandt, and Urijah Faber is perhaps the most noteworthy situation.
In any case, this dynamic could be one direction for the story.
There are a plethora of options for female leads in the film, but consider Sofia Boutella—someone else who has history with Snyder from Rebel Moon. Boutella is also a trained dancer and martial artist.
That would seemingly make her a strong fit for the role—on top of her skills as an actress. If she's also a fighter in the film—even without being the main character—her presence would provide some spotlight on the female experience in the UFC.
While this kind of thing isn't typically something we'd see White do, I'd be shocked if he didn't have a cameo or at least a couple of impact scenes in the film. It's pretty tough to imagine anyone doing an authentic film about the UFC without having White in it in some capacity.
I'd also pencil in people like Jon Anik, Joe Rogan, Daniel Cormier, Megan Olivi, and possibly Michael Bisping, Paul Felder, Brendan Fitzgerald, and Laura Sanko. It depends on the way Snyder shoots the in-Octagon scenes, but traditionally there is some inclusion of commentary with modern combat sports films.
The UFC's commentary teams have become synonymous with the product, and in order to convey the grandness of a UFC event, the crew would seemingly be needed.
Last but not least, you can bet on Alalshikh being in the film—especially if there is an event in Saudi Arabia captured in the film. With the combat sports powerbroker involved, it would be a major surprise if he has no face time in the movie.