Vela said that he tried to bring a different perspective to the series as an athlete from another sportGETTY IMAGES
LAFC F Carlos Vela served as an exec producer on DAZN's "40 Days: Canelo vs. Kovalev" docuseries, marking the soccer star's first experiment as a "player in Hollywood circles," according to Manouk Akopyan of the L.A. TIMES. Vela said of working on the three-part series that leads up to the Canelo Alvarez-Sergey Kovalev fight on Saturday, "I'm happy to expand into a different market and to be part of such an important series ahead of a huge fight. It's also special because it involves a Mexican-born fighter. I tried to bring a different perspective as an athlete from another sport to the documentary, and hopefully I can help raise awareness to that positively" (L.A. TIMES, 10/29).
LEBRON STAYS BUSY: DEADLINE's Denise Petski noted Disney+ has ordered 10 episodes of "Becoming," a docuseries which "focuses on the upbringing of world-class entertainers, musicians and athletes, from LeBron James and his Springhill Entertainment, ESPN Films, Spoke Studios and ITV America." The show was "originally created for Disney XD by ESPN Films" and was spawned from the "Becoming" pilot that aired in '14 and "told the story of James' rise to the top." Each episode of the documentary-style series will "visit a celebrity's hometown, touring important locations that were central to their upbringing" (DEADLINE.com, 10/28).
SAY WHAT YOU MEAN: In Tampa, Diana Nearhos noted the Lightning are rolling out a new podcast, "The Block Party with Dan Girardi." The former NHLer, who retired this offseason, will "co-host the weekly podcast with Seth Kushner, interviewing Lightning players and others around the organization." Girardi, who played the final two seasons of his career in Tampa, said that he will "stay away from the 'hey how'd the game go last night' in favor of funny stories about himself and his about the team" (TAMPA BAY TIMES, 10/26).
