Champions

"Every dream team starts somewhere."

2023 2h 4m EN

👍

6.7

SOLID

★6.7TMDB · 525

ComedyDrama

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

A stubborn and hotheaded minor league basketball coach is forced to train a Special Olympics team when he is sentenced to community service.

“Every dream team starts somewhere.”

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Where to watch · US

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Cast

Woody Harrelson
Marcus
Kaitlin Olson
Alex
Cheech Marin
Julio
Matt Cook
Sonny
Ernie Hudson
Coach Phil Peretti
Madison Tevlin
Cosentino
Joshua Felder
Darius
Kevin Iannucci
Johnny

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Bobby Farrelly
Writers: David Marqués, Javier Fesser, Mark Rizzo
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 7

ERA

Did you know

Released 3 years ago.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Bobby Farrelly, shot by C. Kim Miles. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Michael Franti. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Julie Garcés shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 7

CAST

Did you know

Woody Harrelson and Kaitlin Olson and Cheech Marin carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 7

CAST

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "Every dream team starts somewhere.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 7

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt15339570 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Bobby Farrelly directs. C. Kim Miles behind the camera. Michael Franti scores. Julie Garcés cuts. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Released 3 years ago.
2Directed by Bobby Farrelly, shot by C. Kim Miles. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
3Original score by Michael Franti. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
4Editor Julie Garcés shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
5Woody Harrelson and Kaitlin Olson and Cheech Marin carry the top of the cast.
6Marketing tagline: "Every dream team starts somewhere.".
7IMDB entry: tt15339570 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
8Classified under 8 themes, including "basketball", "special olympics", "basketball team", "aftercreditsstinger".

The technical file

Cinematography: C. Kim Miles
Original score: Michael Franti
Editing: Julie Garcés
Production design: Jean-Andre Carriere
Costume design: Maria Livingstone
Makeup / hair: Kristy Greig
VFX supervisor: Liam Karp
Sound: Bill Mellow
Stunt coordinator: Kristen Sawatzky
Runtime: 124 min · 2h 4m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Box office: $9,263,009
Original language: EN
Certification (US): PG-13
IMDB: Champions (2023)

Also by

Bobby Farrelly

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Community reviews

What people are saying

CinemaSerf2023-03-23
★ 7/10
Have you seen "The Shiny Shrimps" (2019)? Well this reminded me very much of that comedy effort as Woody Harrelson portrays the disgraced basketball coach "Marcus". After one altercation too many on the court, he is ordered by a judge to do some community service coaching a group of young children with learning difficulties. Right from the start, he hates the idea. They have precious little team skills, hand-eye co-ordination, and the only one who is any way competent refuses to have anything to do with him. Luckily, "Johnny" (Kevin Iannucci) has a big sister "Alex" (Kaitlin Olson) who manages to get the coach to commit and focus more on the team - and, well you can easily guess the rest. This is one of those life-affirming films that is well written with loads of characters and dry - frequently pretty black - humour. The thing has an inevitability to it, but like the "Shrimps" it's about inclusion. It's about making sure everyone gets a chance to take part, to enjoy, to thrive - teamwork, family (meatloaf - yuk!) and a genuine sense of celebration feature increasingly and effectively. It isn't a film you will remember for long, it's entirely formulaic - but Harrelson and Iannucci are on good form and I did enjoy it.
Manuel São Bento2023-05-17
★ 6/10
MORE SPOILER-FREE MINI REVIEWS @ https://www.msbreviews.com/movie-reviews/mini-reviews-2023-edition "Champions is one of those feel-good sports flicks designed to leave viewers with a smile on their faces. A beautiful, heartwarming example of how formulaic stories can indeed be elevated by the filmmakers and actors involved. Bobby Farrelly focuses on an inclusive cast, allowing everyone a moment to shine, taking advantage of the endless charisma emanating from Woody Harrelson and Kaitlin Olson to help with the most complex dialogues. An essential, insightful, informative film about people with intellectual disabilities that everyone should allocate some of their time to watch." Rating: B-
tmdb466736322023-05-27
* This has to be one of the only movies I hate with a passion. I, myself, am not psychically disabled, so I don't feel directly offended by this films pre-snarky, and downright criminal sense of humor. Every second it feels like Harrelson has sex. The first scene starts by implying that the two characters on screen "did it." The film tries to make its "steamy moments" feel romantic but it just feels awkward. Harrelson and many others characters make fun of the disabled people. The message of Champions is to try no matter what your disability is, but the whole entire time they make fun of anyone who is not "normal." (0/10 Do not watch.)