If you’ve watched any ESPN over the past year, you’ve probably been aware of Man in the Arena, a docuseries focusing on the life and times of seven-time Super Bowl winner and former Uggs spokesman Tom Brady, who is widely considered to be, at least among our New England readership, to be the greatest quarterback who ever played a down. What you might not have realized is that, like Lebron James and Michael Jordan before him, Brady has his eyes on true cross-media superstardom, especially since he doesn’t have a day job anymore with that whole “retirement” thing (honestly we’re thinking he’ll probably play another season just for shits and giggles in two or three years), and Deadline happened to break the news about Brady’s first project for the silver screen earlier on Wednesday. And, Jesus Christ, does it sound like something that will send Boston Sports Radio into a tizzy.
According to Deadline, Paramount has acquired the worldwide rights to 80 For Brady, which will see the former quarterback do double-duty on the production: he’ll both produce the film and play himself in it, alongside a quartet of genuinely amazing actors. Lily Tomlin, Jane Fonda, Rita Moreno, and Sally Field have signed on to play the foursome of ladies who will make up the core of the film’s cast, which is sure to draw eyes from the same group of folks that turned out in surprisingly large numbers for Book Club and various Nancy Meyers projects over the course of the last decade. It’ll be directed by Kyle Marvin, who co-wrote the Sundance/Cannes hit The Climb which probably would have made more waves had it not been scheduled for release in March 2020. Hindsight’s 20/20, though, and it’ll be interesting to see if this makes folks a little more aware of that film before this one arrives.
Here’s what 80 For Brady is about, via Deadline:
“The feature project is inspired by the true story of four best-friends and New England Patriots fans who take a lifechanging trip to the 2017 Super Bowl LI to see their hero Tom Brady play, and the chaos that ensues as they navigate the wilds of the biggest sporting event in the country.”
An opportunity to star alongside four amazing actors and re-traumatize all of Atlanta in the process? We can see why he decided to go this route after all.
Anyhow, we’ll keep you updated on 80 For Brady as more information emerges, but we’re wondering whether or not this will be better than his bit part in Seth McFarlane’s Ted 2 or, more importantly, if his performance in this film will match the intensity of this bizarre Uggs ad he was in a decade or so ago.