A new docuseries about Wilt Chamberlain is coming soon to Showtime Sports, the premium cabler announced Thursday.
A three-part documentary series titled “Goliath” promises to examine the prolific life, career and influence of Wilt Chamberlain. “Brazen and confident, Chamberlain changed the way the game was played, breaking records and racial barriers and challenging the unwritten rules for all athletes, especially black basketball players, to his standards on and off the court,” the description reads.
Using artificial intelligence to recreate Wilt Chamberlain’s voice, the hall of fame will tell its own story with archival footage provided by the Wilt Chamberlain Estate. Beginning with his emergence on the national scene as a high school student in the 1950s and following the course of his life until his death in 1999, each episode will explore a specific element of Chamberlain’s cultural influence, focusing on the areas of power, money, race. , sex, politics and celebrities.
“We are honored to partner with this group of talented filmmakers to bring the understudied story of Wilt Chamberlain’s complex life to the masses,” said Stephen Espinoza, president of Showtime Sports. “Everyone knows Wilt for his legendary accomplishments on the basketball court—scoring 100 points in a game, averaging 50 points and 25 rebounds a season—but there’s much more to him than his stats. It was way ahead of its time in so many ways that it will last infinitely longer than the numbers on the board.”
“It has been an honor and a privilege for my team and I to share Wilt’s incredible legacy with the world,” Garnett said. “Wilt’s cultural impact as a prominent outspoken African-American athlete was groundbreaking, especially at a time when social power was not popular. no KG, [Michael] Jordan, Hakeem [Olajuwon]LeBron [James]Kobe [Bryant]or Shaq [Shaquille O’Neal] if Wilt doesn’t pave the way for us. We all stand on his strong shoulders. We all owe a special thank you to Barbara Lewis and Wilt’s family for allowing us the full access and trust that was essential to tell this extraordinary story. GOLIATH is not only a tribute to Wilt’s extraordinary career, but also a celebration of the mark he left on and off the basketball court and the world.”
“Goliath” is produced by Village Roadshow Television and Gotham Chopra’s Religion of Sports in association with Kevin Garnett’s Content Cartel, Happy Madison Productions and Heeltap! Entertainment.
The series will premiere on demand and streaming on July 14 for all Paramount+ with Showtime subscribers before making its on-air debut on Showtime on July 16 at 10:00 PM ET/PT with episodes premiering each Sunday.
