This is a site devoted to movies, so naturally, I spend most of my time here talking about topics related to film and the industry as a whole. And yeah, much of my free time is comprised of watching movies, writing about movies, thinking about movies, etc. But believe it or not, I do have other interests. This is something that surprises even the people who know me, but I'm actually a pretty big fan of the Chicago Cubs. Last year, I took a brief break from my movie obsession in order to enjoy their miracle playoff run, an unprecedented month that ended with the World Series trophy returning to the North Side after a curse-ridden 108-year drought. For anyone who watched it all unfold, especially fans of the Cubs, the whole ordeal was nothing shy of magical. From a last-minute comeback in San Francisco to the deliverance of a rainstorm in the final moments of Game 7 of the World Series, the October run was......like something out of a movie. An organization defined by curses and tragedy fighting for glory, as a talented team became locked in a battle to fulfill a long-awaited dream- yeah, Hollywood was going to be all over this.
So it's no surprise that the story of the 2016 Chicago Cubs will be heading to the big screen. Deadline reported earlier this week that Shane Abbess, an Australian filmmaker with no real international experience, will be directing an adaptation of Teammate, the memoir of catcher David Ross (co-written by Don Yaeger). The script will be written by Ram Getz and John Corcoran, two newcomers to the industry, while the film will be produced by Ted Field and Radar Pictures. But perhaps the most interesting tidbit of information from Deadline's report is that Bill Murray has been in talks to play Cubs manager Joe Maddon in the film. Now, all Cubs diehards know that Murray is a huge fan, even heading to the locker room to party with the team during last year's run. Murray and Maddon both have a kind of easy-going flow, so this casting makes perfect sense.
As a fan, this project fills me with both excitement and skepticism. For one, I'm a sucker for anything that plays off just how magical last year's run was. I've seen the trailer for Let's Play Two (the Pearl Jam concert movie set at Wrigley Field) in front of a few movies recently, and I always get goosebumps. So a big-screen rendition of some of the most memorable moments of my lifetime? Yeah, I'm all in. That being said, none of the talent behind-the-scenes is all that well known, and the lack of a major studio is a question mark for me. I also think it's a bit of a strange choice to use Ross' novel as a framework, but that might just be a personal opinion. Anyways, I'll be there opening day for Teammate no matter what. Just don't screw it up, guys.
Image: IMDB/Focus
So it's no surprise that the story of the 2016 Chicago Cubs will be heading to the big screen. Deadline reported earlier this week that Shane Abbess, an Australian filmmaker with no real international experience, will be directing an adaptation of Teammate, the memoir of catcher David Ross (co-written by Don Yaeger). The script will be written by Ram Getz and John Corcoran, two newcomers to the industry, while the film will be produced by Ted Field and Radar Pictures. But perhaps the most interesting tidbit of information from Deadline's report is that Bill Murray has been in talks to play Cubs manager Joe Maddon in the film. Now, all Cubs diehards know that Murray is a huge fan, even heading to the locker room to party with the team during last year's run. Murray and Maddon both have a kind of easy-going flow, so this casting makes perfect sense.
As a fan, this project fills me with both excitement and skepticism. For one, I'm a sucker for anything that plays off just how magical last year's run was. I've seen the trailer for Let's Play Two (the Pearl Jam concert movie set at Wrigley Field) in front of a few movies recently, and I always get goosebumps. So a big-screen rendition of some of the most memorable moments of my lifetime? Yeah, I'm all in. That being said, none of the talent behind-the-scenes is all that well known, and the lack of a major studio is a question mark for me. I also think it's a bit of a strange choice to use Ross' novel as a framework, but that might just be a personal opinion. Anyways, I'll be there opening day for Teammate no matter what. Just don't screw it up, guys.
Image: IMDB/Focus
Comments
Post a Comment