27 June 2024

Champions (2023)

Their best shot is his last shot.

Three-time Oscar nominee Woody Harrelson (True Detective) stars in Champions as Marcus Marakovich, a hot-headed former minor-league basketball coach who, after a series of missteps, is ordered by the court to manage a team of players with intellectual disabilities. He soon realises that despite his doubts, together, this team can go further than they ever imagined.

Emmy nominee Kaitlin Olson (It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Hacks) co-stars, along with an impressive young cast who hold their own opposite the likes of Black Reel nominee Ernie Hudson (Ghostbusters’ Winston Zeddmore), and Grammy-winning comedy legend Cheech Marin (War with Grandpa).

Not released in South African cinemas, Champions won the 2024 Seal of Authentic Representation from the Ruderman Family Foundation, and the Truly Moving Picture Award at the 2023 Heartland International Film Festival. Newsday says, “Harrelson shines as a man learning that there’s more to life than NBA fame, and he has a terrific leading lady in Katilin Olson,” while Financial Times says, “By the end you just want to hug everyone in it.”

Champions is written by Gravity Falls story editor and Green Eggs and Ham co-producer Mark Rizzo, and directed by Bobby Farrelly (of the Farrelly brothers, who’ve given us comedy blockbusters like There's Something About Mary, Dumb and Dumber, and Me, Myself and Irene), in his solo directorial debut.

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