The Peacock miniseries Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist will unite the MCU's War Machine actors.

In the original Iron Man film, which kicked off the Marvel Cinematic Universe in 2008, the role of James "Rhodey" Rhodes (aka War Machine) was played by Terrence Howard. After an apparent falling-out with Marvel Studios, Howard never reprised the role, and Don Cheadle took over as the character starting in 2010's Iron Man 2. Now, per Variety, the two War Machine actors will be co-stars in Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist, which, according to its logline, tells the "infamous story of how an armed robbery during the night of Muhammad Ali’s historic 1970 comeback fight changed not only one man’s life, but an entire city’s destiny."

Muhammad Ali will be played by Dexter Darden in Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist. Don Cheadle has been added to the cast in a series regular role as JD Hudson, one of "Atlanta's first Black detectives assigned to Ali's security detail and robbery." The series will also star comedian Kevin Hart as Chicken Man, a character described as a "hustler trying to level up," while Taraji P. Henderson will play "savvy businesswoman" and Chicken Man's mistress, Vivian Thomas. Samuel L. Jackson, who also has a major role in the MCU as Nick Fury, will appear in Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist as well.

The limited series was created by Shaye Ogbonna, who serves as co-showrunner alongside Jason Horwitch. Director Craig Brewer, who helmed the first two and the final two episodes, is executive producing with Ogbonna, Horwitch, Kevin Hart, Bryan Smiley, Mike Stein, Will Packer, Sabrina Wind, Conal Byrne, Carrie Lieberman, and Jeff Keating. Tiffany Brown, Erika Johnson, and Kenny Burns are co-executive producing.

Two War Machines Unite in Fight Night

Before the Iron Man situation, Don Cheadle and Terrence Howard also both appeared in the acclaimed 2004 film Crash. As for why Cheadle wound up taking over Howard's role in the MCU, Howard would later claim that he was offered less money to return for the sequel than what had been promised to him in the original contract he'd signed for Iron Man. Howard would also claim that co-star Robert Downey Jr. took the money that was supposed to be paid to him.

“It turns out that the person that I helped become Iron Man, when it was time to... re-up for the second one took the money that was supposed to go to me and pushed me out,” Howard said on Watch What Happens Live in 2013. “We did a three-picture deal. So that means, you did the deal ahead of time. It was going to be a certain amount for the first one, a certain amount for the second, certain amount for the third."

He added, "They came to me [for] the second and said, ‘We will pay you one-eighth of what we contractually had for you, because we think the second one will be successful with or without you.’ And I called my friend that I helped get the first job, and he didn’t call me back for three months."

Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist doesn't yet have a premiere date set.

Source: Variety