Release CalendarTop 250 MoviesMost Popular MoviesBrowse Movies by GenreTop Box OfficeShowtimes & TicketsMovie NewsIndia Movie Spotlight
    What's on TV & StreamingTop 250 TV ShowsMost Popular TV ShowsBrowse TV Shows by GenreTV News
    What to WatchLatest TrailersIMDb OriginalsIMDb PicksIMDb SpotlightIMDb Podcasts
    OscarsSTARmeter AwardsAwards CentralFestival CentralAll Events
    Born TodayMost Popular CelebsCelebrity News
    Help CenterContributor ZonePolls
For Industry Professionals
  • Language
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
Watchlist
Sign In
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
Use app
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • Trivia
  • FAQ
IMDbPro

When We Were Kings

  • 1996
  • 12
  • 1h 28m
IMDb RATING
7.9/10
19K
YOUR RATING
Muhammad Ali in When We Were Kings (1996)
Theatrical Trailer from Gramercy Pictures
Play trailer1:43
1 Video
50 Photos
BoxingSports DocumentaryDocumentarySport

Boxing documentary on the 1974 world heavyweight championship bout between defending champion, George Foreman, and the underdog challenger, Muhammad Ali.Boxing documentary on the 1974 world heavyweight championship bout between defending champion, George Foreman, and the underdog challenger, Muhammad Ali.Boxing documentary on the 1974 world heavyweight championship bout between defending champion, George Foreman, and the underdog challenger, Muhammad Ali.

  • Director
    • Leon Gast
  • Stars
    • Muhammad Ali
    • George Foreman
    • Don King
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    7.9/10
    19K
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Leon Gast
    • Stars
      • Muhammad Ali
      • George Foreman
      • Don King
    • 76User reviews
    • 62Critic reviews
    • 83Metascore
  • See production info at IMDbPro
    • Won 1 Oscar
      • 12 wins & 5 nominations total

    Videos1

    When We Were Kings
    Trailer 1:43
    When We Were Kings

    Photos50

    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    + 42
    View Poster

    Top cast35

    Edit
    Muhammad Ali
    Muhammad Ali
    • Self
    George Foreman
    George Foreman
    • Self
    Don King
    Don King
    • Self
    James Brown
    James Brown
    • Self
    B.B. King
    B.B. King
    • Self
    Mobutu Sese Seko
    Mobutu Sese Seko
    • Self (President of Zaire)
    Spike Lee
    Spike Lee
    • Self
    Norman Mailer
    Norman Mailer
    • Self - Writer
    George Plimpton
    George Plimpton
    • Self - Writer
    Thomas Hauser
    Thomas Hauser
    • Self
    Malick Bowens
    Malick Bowens
    • Self - Artist
    • (as Malik Bowens)
    Lloyd Price
    Lloyd Price
    • Self - Concert Promoter
    The Spinners
    The Spinners
    • Themselves
    Miriam Makeba
    Miriam Makeba
    • Self
    Drew Bundini Brown
    Drew Bundini Brown
    • Self - Ali's Ass't Trainer
    • (as Drew 'Bundini' Brown)
    Odessa Clay
    • Self - Ali's Mother
    Howard Cosell
    Howard Cosell
    • Self - ABC Sports
    Wilton Felder
    • Self
    • (as The Crusaders)
    • Director
      • Leon Gast
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    More like this

    Facing Ali
    7.9
    Facing Ali
    Hoop Dreams
    8.3
    Hoop Dreams
    Muhammad Ali
    8.6
    Muhammad Ali
    What's My Name: Muhammad Ali
    8.4
    What's My Name: Muhammad Ali
    Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker's Apocalypse
    8.1
    Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker's Apocalypse
    Murderball
    7.7
    Murderball
    Tyson
    7.4
    Tyson
    The Rumble in the Jungle
    8.4
    The Rumble in the Jungle
    Pumping Iron
    7.3
    Pumping Iron
    The King of Kong
    8.0
    The King of Kong
    I Am Ali
    7.2
    I Am Ali
    The Trials of Muhammad Ali
    7.3
    The Trials of Muhammad Ali

    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      When the film won the Academy Award for Best Feature Documentary, George Foreman and Muhammad Ali came to the stage with the filmmakers to show they had made peace. Foreman helped Ali, stricken with Parkinson's Disease, climb the steps to the stage.
    • Quotes

      Muhammad Ali: It is befitting that I leave the game just like I came in, beating a big bad monster who knocks out everybody and no one can whup him. That's when little Cassius Clay from Louisville, Kentucky, came up to stop Sonny Liston. The man who annihilated Floyd Patterson twice. HE WAS GONNA KILL ME! But he hit harder than George. His reach is longer than George's. He's a better boxer than George. And I'm better now than I was when you saw that 22-years old undeveloped kid running from Sonny Liston. I'm experienced now, professional. Jaws been broke, been knocked down a couple of times, I'm bad! Been chopping trees. I done something new for this fight. I done wrestled with an alligator. That's right. I have wrestled with an alligator. I done tussled with a whale. I done handcuffed lightning, thrown thunder in jail. That's bad! Only last week I murdered a rock, injured a stone, hospitalised a brick! I'm so mean I make medicine sick!

      Don King: Bad dude!

      Muhammad Ali: Bad, fast! Fast! Fast! Last night I cut the light off in my bedroom, hit the switch and was in the bed before the room was dark.

    • Connections
      Edited from The Rumble in the Jungle (1974)
    • Soundtracks
      Am Am Pondo
      Written by Miriam Makeba

      Miriam Makeba Music (ASCAP)

      Performed by Miriam Makeba

    User reviews76

    Review
    Review
    Featured review

    fascinating piece of history, even for non-fight fans

    It goes nearly without saying that Ali is a transcendent figure of his generation. For those currently in their twenties who did not grow up in Ali era, this film is a glimpse at why the world choked up upon seeing Ali light the flame at the Atlanta Olympiad.

    While Gast's footage of Ali in Kinshasa is sparse, interview segments with Plimpton, Mailer and Lee, and a pulsing soundtrack fill in the blanks to tell a surprisingly complete tale. The characters are fascinating: A young Don King, who had not yet made his name; a sullen, menacing George Foreman bearing no resemblance to the huckster we see today; the creepy Mobutu, who is rarely seen though his presence is felt, and Howard Cosell, who appears briefly to predict the defeat of the man who practically created him. Far, FAR superior to Michael Mann's Ali, which lifted huge pieces from this documentary. While Mann's film provides much more for the eye, Gast's "Kings" is a superior example of pure storytelling.
    • kevink868
    • Sep 19, 2002
    • Permalink

    Top picks

    Sign in to rate and Watchlist for personalized recommendations
    Sign in

    FAQ17

    • How long is When We Were Kings?Powered by Alexa

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • April 17, 1997 (Netherlands)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Languages
      • English
      • French
    • Also known as
      • Kelebek Gibi Uçar Ari Gibi Sokarım
    • Filming locations
      • Kinshasa, Democratic Republic Of Congo
    • Production companies
      • Das Films
      • David Sonenberg Production
      • Polygram Filmed Entertainment
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $2,789,985
    • Opening weekend US & Canada
      • $12,479
      • Oct 27, 1996
    • Gross worldwide
      • $2,789,985
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 28 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Dolby Digital
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.85 : 1

    Related news

    Contribute to this page

    Suggest an edit or add missing content
    Muhammad Ali in When We Were Kings (1996)
    Top Gap
    What is the Spanish language plot outline for When We Were Kings (1996)?
    Answer
    • See more gaps
    • Learn more about contributing
    Edit page

    More to explore

    Recently viewed

    You have no recently viewed pages
    Get the IMDb app
    Sign in for more accessSign in for more access
    Follow IMDb on social
    Get the IMDb app
    For Android and iOS
    Get the IMDb app
    • Help
    • Site Index
    • IMDbPro
    • Box Office Mojo
    • License IMDb Data
    • Press Room
    • Advertising
    • Jobs
    • Conditions of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • Your Ads Privacy Choices
    IMDb, an Amazon company

    © 1990-2024 by IMDb.com, Inc.