Mike Tyson To Play Convicted Murderer on "Law & Order: SVU"
by NELLIE ANDREEVA
Thursday January 10, 2013


In his TV acting debut, former boxer Mike Tyson is going for some dark, dramatic stuff with a guest starring role on NBC’s "Law & Order: SVU". He will play Reggie Rhodes, a murderer on death row whose violent actions may in part be the byproduct of a horrible childhood.

His case attracts the attention of Benson (Mariska Hargitay) and defense attorney Bayard Ellis (recurring guest star Andre Braugher) during an SVU investigation.

Also guest starring in the episode is Ed Asner as someone connected to the investigation.

http://www.deadline.com/2013/01/mike-tyson-to-play-convicted-murderer-on-law-order-svu/

Keck's Exclusives: Mike Tyson Discusses His Controversial Role on "Law & Order: SVU"
Jan 29, 2013
by William Keck


If Mike Tyson had been cast on any TV series other than NBC's "Law & Order: SVU", it wouldn't have sparked such a firestorm.

But the hiring of a convicted rapist on a drama that has received numerous awards for its sensitive portrayal of sex crimes has raised flags and inspired one outraged rape survivor to start a petition urging NBC to rethink its decision. So far, the petition has been signed by more than 6,000 protesters, including "NCIS" star Pauley Perrette.



"I'm sorry that she has a difference of opinion, but she's entitled to it," Tyson says of the Change.org petition's author, Marcie Kaveney.

"I'm sorry that she's not happy. But I didn't rape nobody or do anything like that, and this lady wasn't there to know if I did or not. I don't trip on that stuff. I'm not trying to get rich and famous; I'm just trying to feed my family. Why should they care? Since I'm clean and sober five years, I haven't broken any laws or did any crimes. I'm just trying to live my life."







The former boxing champ plays death row inmate Reggie Rhodes, whose crimes were provoked by devastating childhood abuse, in the Feb. 6 episode.

"He's a really damaged young man and a broken person," says Tyson, who served three years of a six-year prison sentence after being convicted in 1992 of raping Desiree Washington, an 18-year-old Miss Black America beauty pageant contestant.

"He was taken advantage of any way a man could be taken advantage of. He murdered one of his abusers and now he's on death row working on trying to get an appeal."







Tyson's scenes all take place in a prison cell or a courtroom — two locations he knows well. But he says he wasn't concerned about dredging up his past.

"I just got the script and did the best I could," he says. "I have no emotional connection to the role. As a human being I can relate to it, but it has nothing to do with me."



Tyson admits that prior to his TV Guide Magazine interview, he was coached by his team about "what to say and how to say it, because they feel I can't handle this stuff."

But all he really wants is to be given a chance to demonstrate that he is a changed man.

"When people say, 'He shouldn't do this,' that upsets me because it hurts people close to me," says Tyson, who has been working hard to foster relationships with his seven surviving children. "I'm happy with myself. I'm not on drugs. I'm not drinking. I'm not making a big fool of myself again. I'm trying really hard, you know?"







Tyson, 46, who won a 1989 Kids' Choice Award for Favorite Male Athlete and oversees his Mike Tyson Care Foundation to help at-risk youth, has long been a "big-time" fan of "SVU".

"My wife [Lakiha Spicer, who he wed in 2009] and I looked on this show a lot, especially when I was going through my relapse and drug periods," he says. "It was the most exciting show on TV. I think it's awesome that they take true events out of the paper. It has great energy."







His favorite "SVU" character is Ice-T's Detective Tutuola; the two share scenes in the episode. Tyson also appears with guest star Andre Braugher and Mariska Hargitay, who in 2002 started her Joyful Heart Foundation to help survivors of sexual assault.

While Hargitay has been silent on Tyson's casting, the foundation's spokesperson expressed serious concerns to the show's producers.

Tyson says he found Hargitay to be "very quiet" on set. "You can tell she's the boss." But he maintains that he didn't take the job looking for friends or admiration. "I didn't go there looking for people to kiss on me and tell me how great I am," he says. "That's my downfall. I try to stay as far away from that as possible. I was there to do a service."







This was Tyson's first opportunity to act as a character other than himself (as he has done in The Hangover films; he'll appear in Part 3 later this year). He is well aware that he has much to learn.

"I don't think I have any acting skills; I have acting ability. I did SVU with the best of my ability, and I'd really like to do more, no matter what the role is. This is a transformation in my growth path as a human being, and I'm so grateful that society in general has given me the opportunity to live a better, healthy life that I deserve to live."

http://www.tvguide.com/News/Mike-Tyson-SVU-1060070.aspx

"Law & Oder: SVU" Moves Mike Tyson Episode Away from Rape Survivor Event
by Matt Webb Mitovich
January 31, 2013


NBC has moved the airdate for a "Law & Order: SVU" episode guest-starring convicted rapist Mike Tyson up a week, to Feb. 6, lest it fall the day before One Billion Rising, a nationwide event protesting rape and other violence against women.

The casting of Tyson — who in 1992 was convicted of raping an 18-year-old Miss Black American pageant contestant, and served three years (of a six-year sentence) in prison for the crime — spurred controversy from the get-go, eliciting at least one petition to have his role recast.

(Tyson, the Washington Post‘s TV Column reports, is playing a death row inmate who murdered a man who abused him as a child.)



Tyson addressed the Change.org petition (which was started by rape survivor Marcie Kaveney and at last count amassed 11,600 signatures) in a TV Guide Magazine interview, saying, “I’m sorry that Kaveney has a difference of opinion, but she’s entitled to it. I’m sorry that she’s not happy, but]I didn’t rape nobody or do anything like that, and this lady wasn’t there to know if I did or not.”

(Tyson always maintained his 1991 encounter with the pageant contestant was consensual.)

“I’m not trying to get rich and famous; I’m just trying to feed my family,” he added. “I’m clean and sober five years, I haven’t broken any laws or did any crimes. I’m just trying to live my life.”

http://tvline.com/2013/01/31/svu-moves-mike-tyson-episode-from-rape-event/

"Law & Order" Boss Dick Wolf Praises "SVU" Episode Featuring Mike Tyson
by NELLIE ANDREEVA
Saturday February 2, 2013


Dick Wolf, creator of the "Law & Order" franchise, has weighed in on the controversial upcoming episode of "Law & Order: SVU", which guest stars former boxer Mike Tyson in his first acting gig playing someone other than himself.

Tyson’s casting has come under attack from advocate groups protesting the involvement of a convicted rapist (Tyson served three years for a 1991 incident involving a Miss Black America pageant contestant) on a show dedicated to sex crime victims.



In the "SVU" episode, titled 'Monster’s Legacy', Tyson plays Reggie Rhodes, a murderer on death row whose violent actions may in part be the byproduct of sexual abuse as a child.

His case attracts the attention of Benson (Mariska Hargitay) and defense attorney Bayard Ellis (Andre Braugher) during an SVU investigation. Also guest starring in the episode is Ed Asner.

“It focuses on what can happen when there is an emotionally charged rush to judgment and it is, in my opinion, one of our strongest episodes in the last five years,” Wolf said in a note accompanying screeners for 'Monster’s Legacy'.



Originally scheduled for Feb. 13, the episode has been moved up to Feb. 6, sparking speculation that the shift may have been made so that the Mike Tyson episode does not air on the eve of One Billion Rising, a global event supporting rape and abuse survivors.

http://www.deadline.com/2013/02/law-order-boss-dick-wolf-praises-svu-episode-featuring-mike-tyson/

I just think L&O SVU is on its last leg. Casting mike Tyson was nothing more than a move to garner ratings. He is not an actor and his speech much of the time is barely recognizable. Bring back Chris meloni return the dynamic as well as decent scripts and this show might have a chance

http://watching-tv.ew.com/2013/02/06/law-order-svu-mike-tyson/?

As Ken Tucker notes, "Unlike 'The Hangover,' it takes a specifically horrible event in Tyson's life" — his conviction for rape — "and uses it as a viewer draw."