Will Smith, who played the late boxing legend Muhammad Ali in 2001's Ali, paid tribute to the recently deceased boxer in a Facebook post.
Smith earned his first Academy Award nomination in 2002 for playing the world heavyweight champion in Michael Mann's biographical drama. The movie followed Ali from 1964-1974 where the boxer earned the heavyweight title, converted to Islam, and was banished from boxing due to his refusal to be drafted in the military. Jamie Foxx played his assistant trainer and Jon Voight got an Oscar nomination for playing journalist Howard Cosell.
Ali was admitted to a hospital in Scottsdale, Arizona with a respiratory illness on June 2. He passed away the next day at age 74. Smith will be one of the pallbearers at Ali's funeral on Friday, according to BBC. The service will take place in Ali's hometown of Louisville, Kentucky, and will be streamed live. The service begins at 2 p.m. EST.