Francis Ngannou continues to make his childhood dreams come true. ‘The Predator’, who grew up in poverty and worked in the sand mines of his native Cameroon, has had quite a journey. After making it to Europe following a harrowing journey, he became a UFC champion, and nearly defeating the heavyweight boxing champion of the world, ‘The Predator’ is now taking strides in the showbiz world.

The Cameroonian appeared in a minor role in Zack Snyder’s sci-fi epic Rebel Moon Part 2, which was released this April and is available for streaming on Netflix. With this appearance, he is officially part of one of the most successful IPs in the world since the film is part of the Star Wars universe.

Ngannou plays a character simply named ‘Gladiator’ in the film, but this is not his first major film appearance. The former UFC heavyweight champion made his silver screen debut in another long-running IP, having played another minor role in 2021’s Fast and the Furious 9.

With his second film appearance, Ngannou is slowly becoming a veritable star, which is not surprising given his powerful screen presence, accentuated by his real-life persona of being one of the ‘baddest’ men in the world. And now he is once again set to remind everyone why.

After playing ‘Gladiator’ on screen, Francis Ngannou will be back this year

Ngannou left the UFC in January 2023 after serious differences with Dana White and co., mostly over fighter pay. After a brief period of free agency, the Cameroonian signed with the UFC’s biggest competitor, PFL, in May last year, starting a new chapter in his martial arts career.

However, after more than a year, the Cameroonian has yet to make his debut in the Donn Davis-founded organization. While a knee injury kept him out of action for most of 2023, Ngannou then decided to go and box Tyson Fury, followed by Anthony Joshua, for the biggest paychecks of his career.

But now, he looks set to finally fight in the PFL. In a recent interview, ‘The Predator’ teased a late 2024 return against the promising and ever-dangerous knockout artist Renan ‘Problema’ Ferreira in Saudi Arabia. The former UFC champ holds the Brazilian in high regard and has been telling people to watch out for the past two years. And now he is finally set to face Ferreira in what will undoubtedly be the PFL’s biggest heavyweight fight to date.

“I will be fighting by the end of the year. That’s what the PFL is working on [a fight in Saudi Arabia]. October, sometime. They’re working in October. It’s not finalized yet, but they were talking about October 19. I think Renan Ferreira is the guy,” Ngannou said. What are your thoughts on the topic?