Big Screen is Next Chapter for Maurice ‘Termite’ Watkins

Maurice “Termite” Watkins has gone from a pest management professional to a professional boxer to the coach of the Iraqi Olympic boxing team; the next chapter in his incredible life journey will be as the subject of an upcoming major motion picture.

In a recent podcast with PCT, Watkins provided an update on the film, which is being produced by Sylvester Stallone’s production company, Balboa Productions. Watkins said the project was set to begin in 2020, but it was delayed because he came down with a very serious case of COVID-19. “I was on a ventilator for 18 days and in the hospital for 30 days,” said Watkins, who added that as part of his recovery he had to learn how to walk again.

Now that he has fully recovered, his focus has returned to the upcoming biopic, including helping to cast the actor who will portray him and providing feedback on the script. “Several months back, they gave me a list of actors to pick from and then the script came back. [The script] had a lot of cursing and was just filthy. So, my wife [Cindy] and I took a stand and we said, ‘No, this is not going to happen,’” he said. Balboa Productions agreed to remove 90 percent of the profanity and the script is being reworked, Watkins said.

The producers, Watkins said, are hoping to land Sian Heder as director. Heder directed the 2021 award-winning film “Coda.” Among the 20 actors interested in the role are Hollywood A-listers Brad Pitt, Matthew McConaughey, Bradley Cooper, Mark Wahlberg and Josh Brolin, Watkins said.

While the movie is still in the early stages (and is yet untitled), and Watkins has learned how commonplace change is in Hollywood, he said the project is generating a lot of buzz. And there certainly is no shortage of material from Watkins’ remarkable life. Born into pest control (his family owns Champions Exterminating Co., Houston), Watkins said his recollection of working in pest control dates to when he was 5 or 6 years old. “I would actually crawl under the houses with my dad and my grandpa,” he recalled.

Watkins also was a mischievous youth who got into a lot of trouble. A family friend recommended to his father that he get Watkins involved in boxing as an energy outlet. Watkins excelled in the ring, becoming the nation’s first 16-year-old Golden Gloves champion (with an amateur record of 128 wins and 10 losses). He then became a professional boxer, compiling 58 wins, five losses, two draws and 48 knockouts. His most memorable pro bout was fighting on the undercard of the 1980 Muhammad Ali-Larry Holmes bout, which was billed as Ali’s “Last Hurrah.”

After retiring from boxing, Watkins went down a wrong path, living in despair and becoming addicted to drugs. He was able to get himself cleaned up and returned to his roots — pest control. Watkins was one of the first pest control contractors hired by the U.S. government to work in Iraq during the Iraq War. His duties included ridding military camps of snakes, scorpions and other pests. Through a series of events he was soon asked to coach and qualify the Iraqi boxing team for the 2004 Olympics.

After the Olympics, Watkins returned to Houston, working a day job and continuing to train local boxers at his personal gym. Along with mentoring kids today, he continues to inspire and motivate via speaking engagements throughout the country.

Podcast with Termite Watkins

Learn more about Maurice “Termite” Watkins in a podcast recorded with PCT’s Brad Harbison. In the podcast, Watkins provides more of his and his family’s pest control history; how he was able to beat his addictions; and why he is excited about the upcoming biopic. Download the podcast at bit.ly/3bTMVqA.