The trascript from "Live with Regis and Kelly" this morning when Mark Wahlberg confirms "The Fighter" is a go:

REGIS: Here’s a very talented actor now starring a new film called “We Own the Night”. Please welcome back to our show, Mark Wahlberg [APPLAUSE]. Hey, Mark, how are you doing? You look great.

MARK: Thank you.

KELLY: How are you?

REGIS: Look at Mark Wahlberg. A freshmen in college. Look at that. You look terrific, man.

MARK: My mom watches all the time (garbled).

REGIS: That’s great.

MARK: How are you guys?

REGIS: You also look like you lost maybe a few pounds?

MARK: I have. I’ve been training for quite some time.

REGIS: That’s right, you’ve got a role coming up as a boxer, right mark? Micky Ward.

MARK: Yeah.

REGIS: So that’s a pretty good workout isn’t it, getting ready for a fight.

MARK: It is. I’ve been training now, the 13th of the month will be a year I’ve been training for this role and we’re probably not going to do it until mid to end of next year. But I know him. He’s a great champion.

REGIS: Is he from Boston?

MARK: He’s from Lowell, Massachusetts and I want to make him look good and make him proud.

KELLY: But at a certain point, do you feel like you could collapse? You don’t want to peak too soon before you start shooting.

MARK: Well, originally, we’re supposed to have already shot the movie.

REGIS: So you’re still in training!

MARK: It keeps getting pushed. But you know, good things don’t come easy. This is something I’ve always wanted to do. Doing “Invincible” was a big dream of mine, to put on NFL pads, so to play a champion, I want to look like one. I always feel like boxing movies have never really captured the real thing. I’m willing to go in there and take a couple of hits. Brad Pitt is going to play the older brother in the movie, an was willing to do the same. It will be very special.

REGIS: That’s terrific. So you’ll just continue training and comes the big..

MARK: And hopefully, it will happen.

Look for a full story in The Sun tomorrow by Rachel R. Briere.