Mark Wahlberg is no stranger to stepping into the role of a real inspirational figure. Between the underdog boxer Micky Ward in The Fighter.
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Father Stuart Long was a Golden Gloves boxer from Montana whose athletic career was cut short abruptly in 1986 when he suffered a broken jaw. Long traveled to Hollywood with the aspirations of becoming a movie star, but discovered that his true passion was the Christian faith, which he’d never taken seriously before. After working hard to become an ordained minister, he died in 2014 after struggling with inclusion body myositis, a progressive muscle disorder.
Even before cameras were rolling, Wahlberg began committing himself mentally and emotionally to handle the sensitive subject material. “We did have to take some liberties,” Wahlberg says. “We weren’t there every step of the way, and there were things we had to dramatize a little bit. I think ultimately we wanted to make sure that we captured Stu’s essence.”
“The most important thing is just speaking to people who knew him best,” he says. “We spent lots of time with Bill, lots of time with some of the people he went to seminary with and the people he touched.” “I had an amazing relationship with my dad,” he says. “He was my hero. My dad had a very tough life and did everything he could just to provide for us. My parents separated at a very young age, and if I wanted to see my dad I had to run two miles and five bad neighborhoods to go and see him, but I wanted to see him every day. When we did have time together, it was very special to me.”
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