Fight Night: The Million Dollar Robbery: The Robbery

“Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist,” the eight-episode miniseries (currently streaming on Peacock), documents two important events in Atlanta’s history. While Muhammad Ali was celebrating his comeback as a professional boxer with a win over Jerry Quarry at Atlanta’s Municipal Auditorium on October 26, 1970, a group of gangsters robbed the Black Mafia of more than a million dollars in cash and jewelry at a nearby after-party. As a result, Atlanta eventually became a Black mecca.

Fight Night (created by Shaye Ogbonna, based on his true-crime podcast) centers on street crook Gordon “Chicken Man” Williams (Kevin Hart), who hosts the after-party in honor of gang-controlling New York City mobster Frank Moten (Samuel L. Jackson). While Chicken Man sees Atlanta as a potential black Vegas, Moten has more ambitious plans to turn the city into a black mecca. But just when it looks like they might be able to work together, the robbery turns Chicken Man into the prime suspect. He must then pursue his rehabilitation (ironically with the help of an old nemesis: Don Cheadle's Detective JD Hudson) to prevent Moten from killing him.

Interestingly, in episodes 2 (“Round Two: Fight Night”) and 3 (“Round Three: Black Vegas”), the heist becomes a mini-movie that jumps back and forth between the fight, the bond between Ali (Dexter Darden) and Hudson, who is sent to protect him, and the planning of the heist, which is told in flashbacks. Stylistically, the show conveys a blaxploitation vibe, while editorially it effectively uses split-screen editing, inspired by the innovative heist film “The Thomas Crown Affair” starring Steve McQueen.

For story editor Maxwell Towson, the black American dream was the common thread, especially for the criminal class. “Even the flash of 'The Star Spangled Banner' during the robbery in the second episode was meant to illustrate that,” he told IndieWire, “but you also see Chicken Man's dream becoming a nightmare.”

“The great thing about the show,” he continued, “is that you see those highs and lows of what really matters to you when it comes to the American dream and what you're willing to sacrifice for it. In Chicken Man's example, he thinks this party will set him apart and get him on Frank's team, while Frank thinks that country [ownership] is what sets him apart.”

The robbery begins with two masked men at the front door in split screen, intercut with a shot of the MC at the start of the Ali fight. They enter the house, accompanied by a fast-moving handheld camera, long takes and more split screens to speed up the pace. They order everyone to get on the floor and hand over the money. But the robbers realize they are too early and prepare for the rest of the guests to arrive.

“The fascinating thing about the robbery is that the same theme runs through it, because these guys have their own American dream,” Towson said. “And they basically get in over their heads at what they thought was a simple house party. They don't really understand what they're dealing with when this black mob ends up being held hostage by them. [at the beginning of Episode 3].”

But it was important to break up the hectic pace of the first part of the heist with a lengthy flashback to explain the robbers' specific roles as they scout the house and then plant an informant (Chloe Bailey's Lena) in the house to keep an eye on everyone. “The intention was to meet the robbers and see how the heist goes down, like in a traditional heist movie, but also try to subvert that once you get to the heist,” Towson added.

Once everyone is held hostage in the basement and the pace slows, the robbery becomes a character study between Chicken Man and Moten, showing how the pressure mounts on Chicken Man to do something. “The intention behind it was to put Chicken Man in danger right away and in a situation that he can't talk his way out of,” Towson said. “With Frank, on the other hand, this is the first time he's been in a scenario where he's not the most powerful person on screen, so we wanted to give Frank that moment [to strike back] because he has the experience, he is the tactician, he is the boss.”

It's a violent, bloody, chaotic escape with a lot of split screening. “It's interesting how it's edited,” Towson added. “We definitely wanted it to be very hectic. And you don't necessarily know where everyone is going. If someone gets hurt or taken out, it's a surprise to everyone. We wanted to feel like when you're escaping this robbery, you're not necessarily keeping track of the people you came with. Chicken Man doesn't really have a plan. Except for Frank, who knows immediately that he's going with his people, and he's going to track down the guy responsible.”