The feel-good sports film is a time-honored tradition in Hollywood. The formula to make it work seems to be pretty obvious, and is on display in the new trailer for “12 Mighty Orphans.”
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Just judging by the trailer, “12 Mighty Orphans” puts all the pieces together for a winning sports drama. First, you take a well-known, likable star—in this case, Luke Wilson—and make him the new guy in town, who has a passion for helping kids but also football. Add to that a group of misfit kids that don’t have any skills at all, but are trying their best to change the course of their lives and learn lessons along the way. Then, for added effect, throw a couple of more big names in the cast as older, wiser folks—such as Robert Duvall and Martin Sheen—and boom, you have a feel-good sports drama that will attract folks to the big screen.
Joining Sheen and Wilson in the cast are Vinessa Shaw, Wayne Knight, Jake Austin Walker, Treat Williams, Ron White, and Robert Duvall. “12 Mighty Orphans” is directed by Ty Roberts, who co-wrote the feature with Lane Garrison and Kevin Meyer. Roberts previously directed the feature, “The Iron Orchard,” which debuted in 2018.
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“12 Mighty Orphans” debuts in select theaters on June 11 and will open wider in the weeks to follow. You can watch the trailer below.
Here’s the synopsis:
12 MIGHTY ORPHANS tells the true story of the Mighty Mites, the football team of a Fort Worth orphanage who, during the Great Depression, went from playing without shoes—or even a football—to playing for the Texas state championships. Over the course of their winning season these underdogs and their resilient spirit became an inspiration to their city, state, and an entire nation in need of a rebound, even catching the attention of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. The architect of their success was Rusty Russell, a legendary high school coach who shocked his colleagues by giving up a privileged position so he could teach and coach at an orphanage. Few knew Rusty’s secret: that he himself was an orphan. Recognizing that his scrawny players couldn’t beat the other teams with brawn, Rusty developed innovative strategies that would come to define modern football.
