The fight will continue, but for a short time it's between rounds.

Actors Mark Wahlberg and Christian Bale were spotted at numerous locations around Lowell earlier this week and will return in July to begin filming The Fighter. The duo will portray brothers Micky Ward and Dicky Eklund, respectively, in the boxing epic.

"This story is about two brothers from Lowell who overcome great struggles, coming together for one moment in time that will last forever. Dicky helped his brother become a champion. It makes it a wonderful movie. There wouldn't be a movie without Dicky Eklund," says Lowell native Rich Farrell, who is part of the local creative team helping with the production of the film.

In a past life, Farrell was the producer of the HBO documentary High on Crack Street: Lost Lives in Lowell, which received the duPont Columbia Award and was nominated for two Cable Ace Awards. Eklund was one of the subjects of the project, which followed three people in their pursuit to get high.

Farrell will be very busy the next couple months. Besides lending his hand and knowledge of Lowell to the Fighter crew, his memoir, What's Left of Us, hits the shelves June 30.

Also, actress Melissa Leo, whose resume includes 21 Grams, Frozen River, Righteous Kill and a regular role in the late NBC series Homicide, will play Dicky and Micky's mom, Alice Eklund in the Fighter.

Farrell added, "This is a great story for Lowell. We've been working on it for a long time and we're going take it to the finish line."