Mike Tyson Revisits Dark Past in 4-Part Netflix Documentary, Says 10 Years Sober
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Oct 14
Mike Tyson Revisits Dark Past in 4-Part Netflix Documentary, Says 10 Years Sober
1 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Oct 14
Summary
Four episodes of Netflix’s “Tyson” premiered this week, with the 60-year-old former heavyweight champion saying the film forced him to relive a “dark life” and left him in tears and apologizing on camera.
Tyson said he is now 10 years without cocaine or alcohol, crediting part of that change to Bufo toad venom use, though he also acknowledged abusing it at times and said he has not taken it for more than a year.
The documentary revisits the 1992 rape conviction, the 1997 Holyfield ear-biting incident and other violent episodes; Tyson says watching them is hard because he sees himself as “totally a different person” now.
He still frames fear and ego as central to his drive, saying they fueled both his rise and his 2024 return against Jake Paul, whose Netflix bout peaked at 65 million concurrent streams.
Now in what he calls “parent mode,” Tyson says age has made him more conservative and reflective, even as he insists the insecurity that shaped his public persona still pushes him to seek greatness.