Fans of Apple TV+’s Ted Lasso and Disney+’s Big Shot, rejoice! There is a new sports project on the block. Or there will be, as Deadline reveals exclusively. The Senior, starring The Shield alum Michael Chiklis, is based on a true story and is set to start production this fall in Texas.
Even though Mike Flynt (Chiklis) is no Vic Mackey, he is also haunted by the past: the former football player lost his shot at being a collegiate linebacker because he developed major issues with another player that ended in a fistfight. The story is set 37 years later, when Mike realizes that, at 59 years old, he’s still eligible to try out for the college team — and he does.
As much as this sounds like a story you’d seen only in sports dramas, it’s true. Much like 1993's Rudy, The Senior is based on a real-life story, with Flynt being considered the Rudy Ruettiger of the boomer generation. After spending several decades regretting his loss of temper, Flynt decided to resume his sports career, regardless of his age. Also, Flynt went to high school at Odessa Permian, made famous by the acclaimed TV series Friday Night Lights.
The Senior is written by Robert Eisele, who wrote for the TV series The Equalizer back in the 80s and wrote the screenplay for Denzel Washington’s The Great Debaters. The movie will be directed by Rod Lurie, whose previous titles include Hell on Wheels, Straw Dogs, and Nothing But the Truth.
Emmy winner Chiklis is best known for his role as corrupt LA detective Vic Mackey in FX’s The Shield. He also gained prominence internationally after playing The Thing in two Fantastic Four movies. Recently, he played another police detective, Captain Nathaniel Barnes, on FOX’s Gotham, for two seasons.
Further details for The Senior, such as the rest of the cast and release date, are yet to be announced.