![\"Zul](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/341963.jpg\" "\\"Zul")
<\/p>\nKUALA LUMPUR, May 20 \u2014 Malaysia\u2019s film industry continues to grow stronger, and producing successful sports dramas has been part of that growth.<\/p>\n
The boxing genre has long been a popular subject in Hollywood, with iconic films such as Rocky, The Fighter, and more recent Creed movies capturing audiences worldwide.<\/p>\n
It was only a matter of time before the local industry embraced the sport and translated it to the big screen \u2014 a genre that has rarely been explored in Malaysian cinema \u2014 and now comes The Furious: Pertaruhan Maruah.<\/p>\n
The project marks the directorial debut of newcomer Heng Aik Siong, who previously served as assistant director to filmmaker Adrian Teh on numerous local productions.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
While 2019\u2019s Sangkar incorporated elements of MMA and the recent Tarung: Unforgiven focused on underground cage-fighting, several other local films have featured minor boxing elements.<\/p>\n
However, as a full-fledged boxing feature, The Furious \u2014 not to be confused with the upcoming Hollywood film of the same name \u2014 is arguably Malaysia\u2019s first true boxing movie.<\/p>\n
\u2018The Furious: Pertaruhan Maruah\u2019 story and Cast<\/p>\n
The story centres on two brothers who reunite after their family\u2019s honour is tarnished when their late father\u2019s name is publicly insulted, setting them on a tense journey driven by dignity, revenge, and family loyalty.<\/p>\n
The film blends realistic boxing action with heartfelt family drama and emotionally charged storytelling, resulting in a grounded and intense sports drama.<\/p>\n
The cast is led by Zul Ariffin as Firdaus, Sky Iskandar as Hakim, Ikmal Amry as Danial, Sandra Lim as Lydia, Zamarul Hisham as Emmet, and Marisa Yasmin as Mastura.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Zul Ariffin as Firdaus, the lead in the upcoming \u2018The Furious: Pertaruhan Maruah\u2019. \u2014 Picture courtesy of GSC Cinemas<\/p>\n
Speaking to the media during yesterday\u2019s press conference at GSC Mid Valley, Zul shared that being part of a boxing film had long been a personal goal and a bucket-list achievement in his acting career.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf I could turn back time to when I was 20, I would have gone into boxing professionally.<\/p>\n
\u201cBoxing is a sport I have loved since I was young, and I have always dreamed of playing the role of a boxer,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cEven a long time ago, I used to tell myself it would be nice to star in a boxing film,\u201d he added, fulfilling a dream that has now come true.<\/p>\n
The preparation went far beyond physical training, involving major weight changes and strict dietary discipline.<\/p>\n
\u201cI want my resume and my life to reflect that I\u2019ve done a boxing film.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is a story that, in ten years\u2019 time, I can look back on and smile.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sky, Ikmal, and the rest of the cast also underwent intense training for the project, a commitment that clearly paid off, as evident during Malay Mail\u2019s attendance at yesterday\u2019s gala premiere.<\/p>\n
Sky added, \u201cI am very proud of what we\u2019ve achieved and what has been shown, and the amount of hard work, training, dedication, and fire we all put in during training.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is something to be proud of,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
![\"Director](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/341962.jpg\" "\\"Director")
<\/p>\n
Director Heng Aik Siong with the cast of \u2018The Furious: Pertaruhan Maruah\u2019 pose at yesterday\u2019s gala premiere held at GSC Mid Valley. \u2014Picture courtesy of GSC Cinemas<\/p>\n
Is it really Malaysia\u2019s first boxing film?<\/p>\n
In an interview with Malay Mail, Heng said The Furious is the \u201cfirst boxing film\u201d that offers an in-depth exploration of a boxer\u2019s life.<\/p>\n
He acknowledged that 2020\u2019s Fight Lah! Kopitiam contains elements of boxing, but it is primarily a comedy centred on saving a kopitiam.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor us, The Furious is something that is a family drama that happens within a boxing family.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s what we really looked into to become and to mention it as really one of the first boxing movies in Malaysia.\u201d<\/p>\n
The idea for this film came about in 2022, as both the director and Teh are fans of pure boxing.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe know there have been MMA and other martial arts movies, but to us, boxing is something really pure and organic to bring to the audience.\u201d<\/p>\n
He added that together with Teh, they have worked on many action features and wanted to try something unique and different.<\/p>\n
A shared passion for boxing has now led to the creation of The Furious: Pertaruhan Maruah.<\/p>\n
The takeaway beyond the boxing<\/p>\n
Despite the hard-hitting action, Heng wants audiences to take away the film\u2019s themes of brotherhood and parental love.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m a father of two sons.<\/p>\n
\u201cI know how parents feel when they plan the future of their children.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI hope audiences can truly appreciate and love their families \u2014 their brothers, sisters, and parents \u2014 even when they seem harsh towards you.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey still love you, and I hope audiences can appreciate that families will always love you, even when sometimes they do things that may hurt you.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Furious: Pertaruhan Maruah is set to take the stage on May 28 across cinemas nationwide.<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"KUALA LUMPUR, May 20 \u2014 Malaysia\u2019s film industry continues to grow stronger, and producing successful sports dramas has…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":683355,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[571],"tags":[64,63,802,329431,329427,329430,329429,85,329426,329428],"class_list":["post-683354","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-boxing","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-boxing","tag-gsc-mid-valley","tag-heng-aik-siong","tag-malaysia-boxing-film","tag-sky-iskandar","tag-sports","tag-the-furious-pertaruhan-maruah","tag-zul-ariffin"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/683354","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=683354"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/683354\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/683355"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=683354"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=683354"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=683354"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}