Mr. T Reveals the Man Behind the Iconic Persona in Netflix Trailer
Long before Mr. T solidified his status as a pop culture legend with unforgettable performances in Rocky III and The A-Team, he was already insisting that respect be given to his name.
“People don’t know the journey I had to take. I was born in the Robert Taylor projects in [Chicago],” Mr. T, whose real name is Laurence Tureaud, states in Us’ exclusive trailer for the forthcoming Netflix documentary Untold Mr. T: I Pity the Fool, set to premiere on Tuesday, September 8. “You have to be tough in the neighborhood.”
As the youngest of 12 children born in 1952, Mr. T, along with his four sisters and seven brothers, grew up in a three-bedroom house on Chicago’s South Side.
“Watching my father being called ‘Boy’ while growing up, I took on the name Mr. T so that the first word everyone would say to me would be ‘Mister,’” he mentions in the trailer. “That’s a mark of respect my father never received.”
After catching the attention of Sylvester Stallone during the “America’s Toughest Bouncer” contest on the NBC reality series Games People Play, Mr. T received his big break by landing the role of Clubber Lang in 1982’s Rocky III, where he famously declared “I pity the fool!” for the first time.
“When the casting director called me and said, ‘Guess what, you got the part for Rocky III,’” he reflects in the trailer. “What an incredible honor.”
Mr. T went on to portray B.A. Baracus in 97 episodes of The A-Team from 1983 to 1987, becoming a cult favorite among countless fans, including actor Terry Crews.
“I’ll always remember the moment I first saw Mr. T,” Crews, 58, recounted in the trailer. “The earrings, the chains, the mohawk. I was like, ‘Who? How?’”
Crews added, “This guy is a real-life superhero.”
Beyond his film career, Mr. T played a significant role in the early days of the World Wrestling Federation (now WWE).
He partnered with Hulk Hogan to defeat “Rowdy” Roddy Piper and “Mr. Wonderful” Paul Orndorff in the main event of WrestleMania I in 1985. Over the years, he made several appearances in professional wrestling, culminating in his induction into the WWE Hall of Fame’s celebrity wing in 2014.
Untold Mr. T: I Pity the Fool, directed by Scott Weintrob, premieres on September 8 on Netflix.
