Champions

Champions is an American sports comedy film directed by Bobby Farrelly in his solo directorial debut, from a screenplay written by Mark Rizzo. It is an English-language remake of the 2018 Spanish film of the same name. The film stars Woody Harrelson, Kaitlin Olson, Ernie Hudson, and Cheech Marin.
Champions was released in the United States on March 10, 2023, by Focus Features.
==Premise==
A temperamental minor-league basketball coach Marcus, on his way to coach in the NBA, finds himself in legal trouble, and in order to satisfy a community service requirement must coach a team of players with intellectual disabilities. Soon, they find themselves competing for a spot in the Special Olympics.
==Cast==
*Woody Harrelson as Marcus, a disgraced G-league basketball coach
*Kaitlin Olson as Alex, Johnny's sister and Marcus' love interest
*Matt Cook as Sonny, an assistant coach
*Ernie Hudson as Phil Perretti, a fellow coach and Marcus' friend
*Cheech Marin as Julio, the manager of the rec center where the Friends practice
*Mike Smith as Attorney McGurk
*Scott Van Pelt as himself
*Jalen Rose as himself
*Madison Tevlin as Consentino
*Joshua Felder as Darius
*Kevin Iannucci as Johnny
*Ashton Gunning as Cody
*Matthew Von Der Ahe as Craig
*Tom Sinclair as Blair
*James Day Keith as Benny
*Alex Hintz as Arthur
*Casey Metcalfe as Marlon
*Bradley Edens as Showtime
==Production==
Principal photography took place in Winnipeg, Canada from November to December 2021. Extras were sought via a casting call through St. Amant, a non-profit organization that works with Manitobans who have developmental disabilities and autism.https://winnipeg.ctvnews.ca/he-s-a-good-actor-winnipegger-set-to-appear-in-locally-shot-woody-harrelson-movie-recounts-on-set-memories-1.6185204
==Release==
Champions was theatrically released in the United States on March 10, 2023. It was originally scheduled to be released on March 24, 2023 against John Wick: Chapter 4 until it was changed to its current release date in January 2023.https://deadline.com/video/polite-society-trailer-sundance-bound-action-comedy-from-focus-features/ The film had its red carpet premiere at the AMC Lincoln Square Theatre in New York on February 27, 2023.https://www.upi.com/Entertainment_News/Photos/Woody-Harrelson-Kaitlin-Olson-attend-Champions-premiere-in-NYC/13686/
==Reception==
===Box office===
In the United States and Canada, Champions was released alongside Scream VI and 65, and is projected to gross around $4 million in its opening weekend.https://www.boxofficepro.com/weekend-box-office-forecast-scream-vi-65-and-champions-take-on-creed-iiis-second-frame/
===Critical response===
Rotten Tomatoes reports a 53% approval rating out of 83 reviews from critics, with an 5.7/10 average rating. The site's consensus reads "Although its apparent attempts to be uplifting can often come across as patronizing, Champions is an amiable enough comedy with some seriously talented stars." Metacritic assigns the film a score of 50 based on 31 reviews, reporting "mixed or average reviews".
==Trivia==
*Bobby Farrelly also directed Woody Harrelson in Kingpin
*The players of the basketball team are disabled actors. This is Ernie Hudson's second movies about basketball after The Basketball Diaries.
==References==
==External links==
*Official website
*Champions at IMDb
*Champions at Box Office Mojo
*Champions at Rotten Tomatoes
*Champions at Metacritic
Category:2023 films
Category:Rated PG-13
Category:Sports films
Category:Sports comedy films
Category:Comedy films
Category:Basketball films
Category:2023 comedy films
Category:2023 drama films
Category:2023 sports comedy films
Category:2023 sports films
Category:Comedy-drama films
Category:Drama films
Category:American films
Category:2023 American comedy films
Category:2023 American drama films
Category:2023 American sports comedy films
Category:2023 American sports films
Category:2023 American comedy-drama films
Category:2023 American films