Boca Raton tennis legend Rick Macci gets red-carpet moment with 'King Richard'

BOCA RATON – Hall of fame coach Rick Macci can add major motion picture star to his one-of-a-kind tennis legacy.

Macci, 66, is a central figure in Warner Bros. Pictures’ “King Richard,” which opened nationwide on Friday.

"King Richard" depicts the upbringing of tennis legends and Palm Beach Gardens residents Venus and Serena Williams and the determination of their father, Richard, who's portrayed by Will Smith.

The movie's scale and success — "King Richard" currently holds a 92 percent positive rating via Rotten Tomatoes — has created a renewed interest in Macci's experience with the Williams sisters.

In early November, Macci hosted an instructional event with Miami non-profit Saving Our Daughters in Boca Raton. Macci gave tennis instruction to a group of girls tennis players and insights into coaching two of the greatest female athletes of all time.

"It was one of the best times in my life because when I got involved with that, I knew that there was no doubt, even at 10 and 11-years-old, that they would be No. 1 in the world and transcend the sport," Macci said.

"I said it on TV, in the press and I called it. I just knew what it would become"

More Tennis: Boomer Health - Pandemic has been a boon for recreational tennis

More: Tennis star serves up viral video with kids from her hometown in Delray

Macci is credited as one of the Williams' sisters most influential coaches, helping bring them to Delray Beach in the early 1990s after a poor upbringing in Compton, California. The Williams sisters still reside in Palm Beach County.

Actor Jon Bernthal portrays Macci in the film, an interesting choice for those familiar with the "tough guy" persona Bernthal established while starring as Shane Walsh in AMC's "The Walking Dead" and "The Punisher" in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

“He rolled up to our meeting wearing a hoodie and his sweatpants high above his ripped waistline, his pit bull, Bam Bam, riding in the front seat of his car,” director Reinaldo Marcus Green told Variety of meeting Bernthal. “He looked nothing like Rick Macci.”

Donning Macci's signature handlebar moustache, Bernthal takes a lighter touch in portraying the legendary tennis coach.

Bernthal said he lost 30 pounds to fit the role and even coached a high-level junior player to get a better perspective on the relationship between coaches and promising young tennis players.

He learned more than a few "Macci-isms" — "Let's put a little more mustard on the hot dog" — along the way and ultimately fell in love with a sport the former college baseball player said he'd never really tried.

“I think compassion, intellect, empathy and kindness are also huge staples of masculinity," Bernthal told Variety of the role. "Rick is every bit as tough, just in a different way. His mask is a mask of joy, and that is an enormously powerful and strong thing.”

Macci said he was thrilled with Bernthal's "feel-good" portrayal.

The duo met for the first time on Monday at the movie's premiere in Los Angeles, where he was also pictured with the Williams sisters.

Macci's tennis resume goes far beyond the WIlliams sisters' ongoing success.

The legendary coach has helped five players reach the world No. 1 ranking and coached eight Grand Slam tournament winners since 1985.

Macci said he's still putting in 50-hour weeks with private lessons at The Rick Macci Tennis Academy in Boca Raton.

When he's not gracing Hollywood red-carpet events, Macci is up at 3:30 a.m. preparing to open Burt Aaronson South County Regional Park, a perk of his newfound status as a park ranger.

"You can have someone who won a Grand Slam on one court and next to them someone paying $5 an hour to play in the public park," Macci said of the tennis facility in Boca Raton.

“I feel like I’ve helped turn this place into Disneyland or Candyland. There’s always something happening. There’s something here for everybody.”

Eric J. Wallace can be reached at ejwallace@pbpost.com.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Boca Raton's Rick Macci hits big screen with 'King Richard' blockbuster