A pilot for the dramatic series Da Bricks — inspired by aspects of Mike Tyson’s youth — has reportedly found a home at HBO. Deadline.com reports that the cable network has ordered a pilot for the project, about a young boxer maneuvering life in Newark, New Jersey, nicknamed “Brick City.” Loosely based on parts of Tyson’s Brooklyn youth, Da Bricks is being described as a “contemporary exploration of what it means to be a young Black man in supposedly post-racial America.”

Writer John Ridley wrote the pilot’s script, which will be directed by Spike Lee. The project was created by Entourage creator Doug Ellin. In fact, inspiration for Da Bricks came from Tyson’s 2010 guest appearance on Entourage, which was based on Mark Wahlberg’s early years in Hollywood. 

Ellin, Ridley, Lee, Tyson and Jim Lefkowitz are executive producing Da Bricks.

There is currently a search for the young Black actor who will play the lead.

(Photo: Holly Stein/GettyImages)