Tony Bellew
Tony Bellew is an actor, born 1982.
The boxing record is the reason he is on a film page at all. He fought professionally from 2007 to 2018, held the British and Commonwealth light-heavyweight titles between 2010 and 2014, the European cruiserweight title from 2015 to 2016 and the WBC cruiserweight title from 2016 to 2017, and was a three-time ABA heavyweight champion as an amateur before any of it.
Then Creed cast him as 'Pretty' Ricky Conlan, and the casting solved a problem boxing films usually fudge. An actor can be taught to look like a fighter from certain angles; a Liverpool cruiserweight who was an active world-level professional at the time does not have to be taught anything, and the difference is visible in the way the other performers have to move around him. He is not doing a great deal of acting and he is not asked to. He is being genuinely intimidating, which trained actors mostly cannot fake at close range. He returned as Conlan in Creed III.
Since retiring he has worked as a boxing analyst and commentator, and the British television listed here belongs to that second career rather than to the film one: panel shows, quiz shows, guest turns as himself on A League of Their Own, Rob and Romesh Vs and Fantasy Football League. It is a very normal retirement for a popular fighter, and he is good company throughout it.
Movies (2)
TV (6)
Where to start with Tony Bellew
Only one title here works as an entry point, and Creed earns the position. Conlan is the opponent the whole film points toward, and Bellew gives him a plausible weight and menace no stunt performer could supply. Creed III brings the character back and works best if you have seen the first.
Everything else here is the man himself on British television, and it is genuinely good company. A League of Their Own is the best of the panel shows, Rob & Romesh Vs puts him in a room with two comedians who enjoy winding him up, and Fantasy Football League swaps the sport for football. Celebrity Catchphrase and Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? are quiz television, and exactly what you would expect from it.