Mike Tyson: Musicals, Dancing Could Be Next Challenge For Boxing Champ

Mike Tyson says musicals will take the place of boxing gloves in the next phase of his life.

The former heavyweight world champion is ready to move into a softer, more artistic phase of his life and said he thinks performing on stage rather than boxing in a ring is the way to go, the Telegraph reported.

“I want to dance and sing. I want to do some dancing and singing musicals,” Tyson said during a visit to Hong Kong.

Mike Tyson’s musicals would certainly help change the public perception. Though the boxing champ can actually be very introspective and thoughtful, he is known to most as the bruising, brash young fighter who plowed through opponents to become the youngest heavyweight champion before his life unraveled.

The now 46-year-old Hall of Fame boxer served time for rape, and during his comeback after being released from prison bit off part of Evander Holyfield’s ear in a match.

“I don’t have the desire to be that guy any more,” Mike Tyson said of his mean past. “I was always the bad guy that wanted to be a good guy, but I didn’t know how to be a good guy. I was always so concentrating on being bad.”

Tyson already made his on-stage debut earlier this year with a one-man show titled Mike Tyson: Undisputed Truth.

It’s not just singing in musicals that Tyson dreams about. He also wants to dance, attempting to compare himself to Billy Elliot,the New York Daily News reported. Billy Elliot was a musical about a boy who trades in boxing gloves for ballet slippers.

“I want to be like Billy Madison,” Tyson said, confusing the last name with the title character from Adam Sandler’s comedy. “Remember that show? Anybody see that? Remember he’s a boxer. He turns into a ballet dancer.”

Mike Tyson’s musicals revelation came as he addressed the CLSA Investors’ Forum about how he overcame his rough upbringing to achieve a brilliant career, but then saw his life succumb to alcohol and drug addictions.

The boxer isn’t exactly an amateur when it comes to acting. He has appeared in a number of films and television shows like The Hangover and Bailando, an Argentinian dance show he appeared on with his wife, Lakiha Spicer. But Mike Tyson’s musicals would be a big departure from the small roles he’s done so far, mostly playing himself.