The Greatest Review: Jaalen Best and Amin Joseph Shine in Muhammad Ali Series
Reel Perspectives
November 7, 2026
-The road to success is paved in humility.
The most interesting fight in The Greatest begins long before Cassius Clay faces Sonny Liston. It unfolds between fathers and sons, inside a household where pride can turn into resentment, and within a young Black man learning that success will not necessarily buy him freedom. Prime Video’s new Muhammad Ali series finds its strongest material in those tensions, with Jaalen Best leading an impressive ensemble that makes the road to a familiar championship victory worth watching.
Best has an enormous responsibility here. Playing Ali means stepping into the image of someone audiences already know through his voice, his confidence and his extraordinary physical presence. Yet Best’s most compelling work comes when Clay is still trying to understand the distance between the greatness he promises the world and the person he is becoming. He is funny, ambitious and sometimes so sure of himself that you cannot help enjoy the spectacle, but there is also a young man who wants his family’s approval.
Created by Ben Watkins and developed with Ali’s estate, with executive producers Lonnie Ali, Michael B. Jordan and Josh Wakely, The Greatest concentrates its first season on the years between Clay’s gold medal at the 1960 Rome Olympics and his 1964 heavyweight championship victory. That focus gives the series time to examine how family, racism and religion shape his decisions. The championship remains the goal, but the people around Clay make getting there considerably more complicated than winning fights.
Omari Hardwick is fantastic as Cassius Clay Sr., whose investment in his son’s future becomes tangled with bitterness over his own unrealized ambitions. Clay Sr. wants to celebrate what his son might achieve, yet the possibility that his child will surpass him also deepens his dissatisfaction with himself. His abusive behavior towards their mother gives their relationship volatility, while also underscoring the complicated love he has for both his sons.
The supporting cast is fantastic. Dana Gourrier gives Odessa “Bird” Clay an emotional presence that makes her relationship with both men essential to the story. Kai Parham plays Rudy, Clay's younger brother, and Giovanni Ribisi is dependable as Angelo Dundee. Beyond the family, the series follows the familair story of a young Black athlete confronting the limits of the country he represents. The civil rights movement and the memory of Emmett Till’s murder give his political awakening a painful context. Clay brought home Olympic gold but still faced a society unwilling to treat him with dignity, making his growing insistence on defining himself feel both personal and necessary.
Michael Ealy’s Malcolm X and Hill Harper’s Elijah Muhammad bring different forms of authority to Clay’s increasing religious development. Ealy makes Malcolm’s connection with the young fighter compelling, while Harper gives Elijah Muhammad an influence that carries real consequences. The pressure surrounding Clay’s faith becomes especially heightened when staying true to his beliefs threatens his title.
But the performance that repeatedly demands attention belongs to Amin Joseph. His Sonny Liston gives The Greatest some of its most emotionally complex material, particularly when the series allows us to see how little security the heavyweight championship has brought him. The parallels between Liston and Clay are especially effective in the portrayals of their fathers. Both stories show how violence and disappointment can follow a son into adulthood, although the men respond in different ways. Clay keeps announcing the future he intends to claim. Joseph’s Liston remains trapped by childhood abuse he cannot put behind him, carrying the damage of his father’s beatings into a life where being feared has become a source of power but also insecurities.
The allegations of sexual misconduct and his wife leaving before the Clay fight bring his personal turmoil into sharper focus. Joseph allows the shame, anger and insecurity to coexist. There is compassion in the performance, but the character remains difficult, capable of causing harm even as he struggles with what has been done to him. In the face of defeat, Joseph handles the character’s humiliation, anger and isolation with intensity and unbeleivable heartbreak. It's a terrific performance that gives Liston emotional weight throughout the season, rather than saving his significance for the moment he faces Clay.
We have seen Ali’s story told so many times, and skepticism about another adaptation is understandable, however The Greatest is a damn good series. The performances by the supporting cast give the season texture, allowing Clay’s transformation to emerge through relationships as much as through milestones.
By the finale, The Greatest has built a strong foundation for exploring more of Ali’s life and career. There is considerable history still ahead, but this first season feels satisfying because it takes these early years seriously. We may know who wins the fight, but The Greatest makes the people stepping into that ring worth getting to know all over again.
The Greatest is streaming on Prime Video.
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