Moviefone Editorial

Tag: concussion

  • Best Football Movies To Watch On Super Bowl Sunday

    Best Football Movies of All Time.
    Best Football Movies of All Time.

    “Are you ready for some Football?”

    Super Bowl LX is scheduled for Sunday, February 8th and it promises to be an unforgettable game between the Seattle Seahawks and the New England Patriots.

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    However,  if you still need your football fix, Moviefone has compiled a list of 30 of the best football movies of all time for you to watch after the game.

    These football movies cover what happens both on and off the field, and best of all, every movie here is streaming right now, so you can get started watching any of them immediately.

    Let’s begin!

    Related Article: Tyriq Withers Talks ‘HIM’ Digital Release and Working with Marlon Wayans

    30. ‘The Blind Side‘ (2009)

    (L to R) Quinton Aaron and Sandra Bullock in 'The Blind Side.' Photo: Warner Bros. Pictures.
    (L to R) Quinton Aaron and Sandra Bullock in ‘The Blind Side.’ Photo: Warner Bros. Pictures.

    The story of Michael Oher (Quinton Aaron) a homeless and traumatized boy who became an All American football player and first round NFL draft pick with the help of a caring woman (Sandra Bullock) and her family

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    29. ‘American Underdog‘ (2021)

    American Underdog tells the inspirational true story of Kurt Warner (Zachary Levi), who went from a stockboy at a grocery store to a two-time NFL MVP, Super Bowl champion, and Hall of Fame quarterback. The film centers on Warner’s unique story and years of challenges and setbacks that could have derailed his aspirations to become an NFL player – but just when his dreams seemed all but out of reach, it is only with the support of his wife, Brenda (Anna Paquin) and the encouragement of his family, coaches, and teammates that Warner perseveres and finds the strength to show the world the champion that he already is.

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    28. ‘Radio‘ (2003)

    High school football coach Harold Jones (Ed Harris) befriends Radio (Cuba Gooding Jr.), a mentally-challenged man who becomes a student at TL Hanna High School in Anderson South Carolina. Their friendship extends over several decades where Radio transforms from a shy tormented man into an inspiration to his community.

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    27. ‘Gridiron Gang‘ (2006)

    Under the leadership of their counselor (Dwayne Johnson), teenagers at a juvenile detention center gain selfesteem by playing football together.

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    26. ‘All the Right Moves‘ (1983)

    Sensitive study of a headstrong high school football star (Tom Cruise) who dreams of getting out of his small Western Pennsylvania steel town with a football scholarship. His equally ambitious coach (Craig T. Nelson) aims at a college position resulting in a clash which could crush the players dreams.

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    25. ‘The Underdoggs‘ (2024)

    (L to R) Snoop Dogg as Jaycen "2 J's" Jennings and Mike Epps as Kareem in director Charles Stone III's 'The Underdoggs,' an Amazon MGM Studios film. Photo credit: Jacob Kemp. © 2024 Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures Inc. All Rights Reserved.
    (L to R) Snoop Dogg as Jaycen “2 J’s” Jennings and Mike Epps as Kareem in director Charles Stone III’s ‘The Underdoggs,’ an Amazon MGM Studios film. Photo credit: Jacob Kemp. © 2024 Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures Inc. All Rights Reserved.

    Jaycen ‘Two Js’ Jennings (Snoop Dogg) is a washed-up former pro football star who has hit rock bottom. When he is sentenced to do community service coaching the Underdoggs, an unruly pee-wee football team in his hometown, he sees it mostly as an opportunity to rebuild his public image. But in the process, he may just turn his life around and rediscover his love of the game.

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    24. ‘The Longest Yard‘ (2005)

    Pro quarterback Paul Crewe (Adam Sandler) and former college champion and coach Nate Scarboro (Burt Reynolds) are doing time in the same prison and are asked to put together a team of inmates to take on the guards. Crewe enlists the help of Scarboro to coach the inmates to victory in a football game fixed to turn out quite another way.

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    23. ‘The Program‘ (1993)

    Several players from different backgrounds try to cope with the pressures of playing football at a major university. Each deals with the pressure differently some turn to drinking others to drugs and some to studying.

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    22. ‘The Best of Times‘ (1986)

    A smalltown loser (Robin Williams) determines to have one more shot at the big time by winning a football game.

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    21. ‘Varsity Blues‘ (1999)

    In small-town Texas, high school football is a religion, 17-year-old schoolboys carry the hopes of an entire community onto the gridiron every Friday night. When star quarterback Lance Harbor (Paul Walker) suffers an injury, the Coyotes are forced to regroup under the questionable leadership of John Moxon (James Van Der Beek), a second-string quarterback with a slightly irreverent approach to the game.

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    20. ‘The Longest Yard‘ (1974)

    Burt Reynolds in 1974's 'The Longest Yard.' Photo: Paramount Pictures.
    Burt Reynolds in 1974’s ‘The Longest Yard.’ Photo: Paramount Pictures.

    A football player-turned-convict (Burt Reynolds) organizes a team of inmates to play against a team of prison guards. His dilemma is that the warden (Eddie Albert) asks him to throw the game in return for an early release but he is also concerned about the inmates lack of self-esteem.

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    19. ‘The Waterboy‘ (1998)

    Bobby Boucher (Adam Sandler) is a water boy for a struggling college football team. The coach (Henry Winkler) discovers Boucher’s hidden rage makes him a tackling machine whose bone-crushing power might vault his team into the playoffs.

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    18. ‘Jerry Maguire‘ (1996)

    Jerry Maguire (Tom Cruise) used to be a typical sports agent willing to do just about anything he could to get the biggest possible contracts for his clients plus a nice commission for himself. Then one day he suddenly has second thoughts about what he’s really doing. When he voices these doubts he ends up losing his job and all of his clients save Rod Tidwell (Cuba Gooding Jr.) an egomaniacal football player.

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    17. ‘Invincible‘ (2006)

    Inspired by the true story of Vince Papale (Mark Wahlberg), a man with nothing to lose who ignored the staggering odds and made his dream come true. When the coach of Papale’s beloved hometown football team hosted an unprecedented open tryout, the public consensus was that it was a waste of time – no one good enough to play professional football was going to be found this way.

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    16. ‘Leatherheads‘ (2008)

    A light hearted comedy about the beginnings of Professional American Football. When a decorated war hero (George Clooney) and college all star (John Krasinski) is tempted into playing professional football. Everyone see the chance to make some big money, but when a reporter digs up some dirt on the war hero… everyone could lose out.

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    15. ‘HIM‘ (2025)

    Marlon Wayans is Isaiah (back, pointing) and Tyriq Withers is Cam (foreground) in 'HIM', directed by Justin Tipping. Photo: Universal Pictures.
    Marlon Wayans is Isaiah (back, pointing) and Tyriq Withers is Cam (foreground) in ‘HIM’, directed by Justin Tipping. Photo: Universal Pictures.

    After suffering a potentially career-ending brain trauma, Cameron Cade (Tyriq Withers) receives a lifeline when his hero, legendary eight-time Championship quarterback and cultural megastar Isaiah White (Marlon Wayans), offers to train Cam at Isaiah’s isolated compound that he shares with his celebrity influencer wife. But as Cam’s training accelerates, Isaiah’s charisma begins to curdle into something darker.

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    14. ‘Necessary Roughness‘ (1991)

    When the Texas Southern Armadillos football team is disqualified for cheating and poor grades, the University is forced to pick from a team that actually goes to school. Will they even win a single game?

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    13. ‘North Dallas Forty‘ (1979)

    A semi-fictional account of life as a professional football player. Loosely based on the Dallas Cowboys team of the early 1970s.

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    12. ‘80 for Brady‘ (2023)

    Inspired by the true story of four best friends (Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin, Rita Moreno and Sally Field) living life to the fullest when they take a wild trip to the 2017 Super Bowl LI to see their hero Tom Brady play.

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    11. ‘Draft Day‘ (2014)

    At the NFL Draft, general manager Sonny Weaver (Kevin Costner) has the opportunity to rebuild his team when he trades for the number one pick. He must decide what he’s willing to sacrifice on a life-changing day for a few hundred young men with NFL dreams.

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    10. ‘The Replacements‘ (2000)

    Keanu Reeves in 'The Replacements'. Photo: Warner Bros. Pictures.
    Keanu Reeves in ‘The Replacements’. Photo: Warner Bros. Pictures.

    Maverick old-guard coach Jimmy McGinty (Gene Hackman) is hired in the wake of a players’ strike to help the Washington Sentinels advance to the playoffs. But that impossible dream hinges on whether his replacements can hunker down and do the job, including washed up Quarterback Shane Falco (Keanu Reeves). So, McGinty dusts off his secret dossier of ex-players who never got a chance (or screwed up the one they were given) and knits together a bad-dream team of guys who just may give the Sentinels their title shot.

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    9. ‘Brian’s Song‘ (1971)

    Based on the real-life relationship between teammates Brian Piccolo (James Caan) and Gale Sayers (Billy Dee Williams) and the bond established when Piccolo discovers that he is dying.

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    8. ‘Heaven Can Wait‘ (1978)

    Joe Pendleton (Warren Beatty) is a quarterback preparing to lead his team to the Super Bowl when he is almost killed in an accident. An overanxious angel plucks him to heaven only to discover that he wasn’t ready to die, and that his body has been cremated. A new body must be found, and that of a recently-murdered millionaire is chosen. His wife and accountant—the murderers—are confused by this development, as he buys the L.A. Rams in order to once again quarterback them into the Super Bowl.

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    7. ‘Wildcats‘ (1986)

    Molly (Goldie Hawn) is a high school track coach who knows just as much about football as anyone else on the planet. When a football coach’s position becomes vacant, she applies for the job, despite snickers from fellow staff members and her former husband.

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    6. ‘We Are Marshall‘ (2006)

    When a plane crash claims the lives of members of the Marshall University football team and some of its fans, the team’s new coach (Matthew McConaughey) and his surviving players try to keep the football program alive.

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    5. ‘The Last Boy Scout‘ (1991)

    (L to R) Bruce Willis and Damon Wayans in 'The Last Boy Scout'. Photo: Warner Bros.
    (L to R) Bruce Willis and Damon Wayans in ‘The Last Boy Scout’. Photo: Warner Bros.

    When the girl (Halle Berry) that detective Joe Hallenback (Bruce Willis) is protecting gets murdered, the boyfriend (Damon Wayans) of the murdered girl attempts to investigate and solve the case. What they discover is that there is deep seated corruption going on between a crooked politician and the owner of a pro football team.

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    4. ‘Rudy‘ (1993)

    Rudy (Sean Austin) grew up in a steel mill town where most people ended up working, but wanted to play football at Notre Dame instead. There were only a couple of problems. His grades were a little low, his athletic skills were poor, and he was only half the size of the other players. But he had the drive and the spirit of five people and has set his sights upon joining the team.

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    3. ‘Friday Night Lights‘ (2004)

    A small, turbulent town in Texas obsesses over their high school football team to an unhealthy degree. When the star tailback, Boobie Miles (Derek Luke), is seriously injured during the first game of the season, all hope is lost, and the town’s dormant social problems begin to flare up. It is left to the inspiring abilities of new coach Gary Gaines (Billy Bob Thornton) to instill in the other team members — and, by proxy, the town itself — a sense of self-respect and honor.

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    2. ‘Remember the Titans‘ (2000)

    After leading his football team to 15 winning seasons, coach Bill Yoast (Will Patton) is demoted and replaced by Herman Boone (Denzel Washington) – tough, opinionated and as different from the beloved Yoast as he could be. The two men learn to overcome their differences and turn a group of hostile young men into champions.

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    1. ‘Any Given Sunday‘ (1999)

    (L to R) Jamie Foxx, Al Pacino and Denis Quaid in 'Any Given Sunday'. Photo: Warner Bros.
    (L to R) Jamie Foxx, Al Pacino and Denis Quaid in ‘Any Given Sunday’. Photo: Warner Bros.

    A star quarterback (Dennis Quaid) gets knocked out of the game and an unknown third stringer (Jamie Foxx) is called in to replace him. The unknown gives a stunning performance and forces the ageing coach (Al Pacino) to reevaluate his game plans and life. A new co-owner/president (Cameron Diaz) adds to the pressure of winning. The new owner must prove herself in a male dominated world.

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  • Will Smith Thought ‘Concussion’ Would Have More Impact on Football

    “Concussion” was released last Christmas, but it was a gift few seemed to want. Will Smith earned a Golden Globe nomination for his role as Dr. Bennet Omalu, the forensic pathologist who fought the NFL to raise awareness about the dangers of football-related head trauma. However, that awareness hasn’t spread as wide as Smith hoped. The film only made about $48 million worldwide off a $35 million budget, and not much has changed in the football world in reaction to the film.

    “I thought ‘Concussion’ would have a bigger impact,” Smith told Vanity Fair (via The Hollywood Reporter). “I knew it would be hard because people love the game, but the science is so overwhelming, and it’s something that we really need to take a look at. … I thought that people would get behind the mission of that. I was surprised that people were absolutely like, ‘Nope, I’m not stopping watching football, so I don’t want to know.’”

    He shared anecdotal evidence to this effect, describing a meeting with retired four-star General David Petraeus (who oversaw coalition forces in Iraq, then led the CIA). “I saw Petraeus randomly a couple months ago, and he said, ‘Listen, I just watched Concussion. My wife made me watch it; I didn’t want watch it. I had refused to watch it. That’s the best movie you ever made.’ That was the first time that someone had actually, specifically said they didn’t want the pain of watching it.”

    Yeah, fans may have seen “Concussion” as a Debbie Downer right before the Super Bowl, like making a movie on how chocolate can be bad for you right before Halloween. No one likes to feel uncomfortable or guilty about liking something, so it’s easier to avoid or rationalize. It’s not like fans would really boycott football, but Smith probably hoped for a movement to create change in the sport to better protect the players.

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  • Christmas Box Office: Audiences Play Santa Claus and Give Generously to All

    box office christmasBelieve it or not, there was a lot more than just “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” going on at the multiplex this holiday weekend. With four new wide releases competing against each other, one art-house release expanding wide, and “Star Wars” still taking up most of the oxygen in the auditorium, the new movies should all have struggled. Instead, all of them did better than expected.

    As a result, this weekend was nearly as huge as last weekend, the frame that saw “Star Wars” buoy the box office and break all those records. And it may even have been big enough to help propel 2015 into the record books.

    Sure, “The Force Awakens” probably pulled a lot of people into the multiplex, even if they ended up seeing other movies. The seventh “Star Wars” installment continues to set records, with the biggest Christmas Day take ever ($49 million), the biggest second weekend ever (an estimated $153.5 million), and the fastest pace ever to a $500 million domestic gross (10 days).

    But it also helped that Christmas Day fell on a Friday, which is why six major new films opened on December 25, each expecting to take full advantage of a complete holiday weekend.

    On paper, no one was expecting much from any of them. Either everyone would just go see “The Force Awakens,” or the new movies would simply cannibalize each other.

    And yet, “Daddy’s Home,” the new Will Ferrell comedy, earned an estimated $38.8 million, nearly twice what pundits predicted. David O. Russell‘s awards-hopeful “Joy,” starring Jennifer Lawrence, opened in third place with an estimated $17.5 million, also on the high end of expectations. It helped that both movies played better with audiences than they did with critics (both earned a B+ from viewers at CinemaScore, despite weak-to-mixed reviews). But it also helped that there’s nothing else in the marketplace like either Ferrell’s live-action family comedy or Lawrence’s biographical comedy-drama.

    Similarly, there’s no other film like Will Smith‘s serious-minded football drama “Concussion,” which opened slightly above expectations with an estimated $11.0 million, good for sixth place. And there’s also nothing like “Point Break,” the 3D action remake that opened at No. 8 with an estimated $10.2 million. Considering the movie’s terrible reviews, its weak marketing (it’s from Warner Bros., the studio that, “Creed” aside, has been releasing nothing but duds for months), and its utter superfluousness (did we really need or ask for a remake of the 1991 Keanu Reeves surfing-bank-robbers thriller?), those “Point Break” sales were also much better than expected.

    Between “Concussion” and “Point Break” was “The Big Short,” another Oscar hopeful that expanded this weekend from eight art-house theaters to 1,585 screens and earned a strong estimated $10.5 million as a result. That’s very good for a satirical movie about the 2008 financial crash starring several A-list actors in horrible wigs.

    Even the holdovers did well. In fourth place, Tina Fey and Amy Poehler‘s R-rated comedy “Sisters” earned another estimated $13.9 million, losing less than half a percentage point in sales from last weekend. Fifth-place finisher “Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Road Chip” earned an estimated $12.7 million, down a slight 11 percent from a week ago.

    According to Sunday estimates, Quentin Tarantino’s “The Hateful Eight” missed out on a top 10 debut by less than $70,000. Few predicted big numbers for a three-hour western opening in just 100 theaters, but “Eight” beat the predictions and scored an estimated $4.5 million.

    And Leonardo DiCaprio‘s western, “The Revenant,” opened in just four theaters, but it earned an estimated $117,750 at each of them. That’s a phenomenal per-screen average, the third best of any movie this year. (Only “Steve Jobs” and “American Sniper” enjoyed higher per-venue averages.)

    Like the other new movies this week, these were both offerings that likely succeeded because of their uniqueness. “Eight” may have received some of the weakest reviews of Tarantino’s career, but the chance to see the much-hyped spectacle in a 70MM wide-screen roadshow print made the film’s debut an event. And “Revenant,” in which DiCaprio’s frontiersman is notoriously mauled by a bear, has been touted as the film that may finally win the actor his first Oscar.

    It’s often said that it takes a very special event-movie to lure audiences out of their living rooms and into a movie theater. “The Force Awakens” has certainly been that kind of event, but so, apparently, were many of the other movies playing this weekend.

    Thanks largely to the huge numbers posted this weekend and last, 2015 is on track to beat 2013 for the most lucrative year on record; it’ll take only $30 million worth of tickets sold in the next four days to grab the crown. It would also take just $107 million over the next four days for 2015 to become the first year to see the North American box office crack $11 billion. For a year that saw brief but alarming slumps in the spring, summer, and fall, that’s not too shabby.

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  • Will Smith Thinks ‘There Might Be a Future’ for Him in Politics

    US-ENTERTAINMENT-SCREENING-CONCUSSIONWill Smith has already conquered Hollywood. Washington, D.C. might be next.

    On the Hollywood Reporter’s Awards Chatter podcast, Smith talked about how the character he plays in his upcoming movie “Concussion” made a real difference in the world. Dr. Bennet Omalu took on the National Football League for covering up concerns that concussions could have long-term negative effects on players. And Smith wants to do make a difference, too — perhaps by getting into politics.

    “I think that that’s what my grandmother always hoped, that I would make myself useful to people in this lifetime,” he said, adding, “And, you know, as I look at the political landscape, I think that there might be a future out there for me. They might need me out there. This is the first year that I’ve been incensed to a level that I can’t sleep, you know?”

    Years ago, Smith joked about wanting to become the first black president. Too late for that, but there’s always second, Will!

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  • NFL Issues Statement After Will Smith’s ‘Concussion’ Trailer

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    After the release of the trailer for “Concussion,” the National Football League has issued a statement regarding safety for its players.

    “We are encouraged by the ongoing focus on the critical issue of player health and safety,” the NFL told The Hollywood Reporter. “We have no higher priority. We all know more about this issue than we did 10 or 20 years ago. As we continue to learn more, we apply those learnings to make our game and players safer.”

    The Will Smith film brings to the forefront the issue of head injuries in professional football that was documented in Frontline’s “A League of Denial: The NFL’s Concussion Crisis,” which highlighted how the league attempted to silence research by and discredit forensic pathologist Dr. Bennet Omalu, who linked the sport’s violence to critical health issues.

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  • Director Denies ‘Concussion’ Intended to ‘Take Down’ the NFL

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    For the record, Peter Landesman loves football. He played it for two years in college.

    So the director disputes his film “Concussion,” about a scientist who discovered brain trauma in former players from head injuries, is a hit piece directed at the NFL, despite the ominous portrayal of the league in the film’s trailer.

    “This is not a movie that is intended to take down the NFL or destroy football,” Landesman tells EW.com.

    Instead, he says, the Christmas release is a “David-versus-Goliath movie about a whistleblower who tells an important truth about an incredibly important thing.”

    What’s more, he adds, it’s “maybe the best performance Will Smith has ever given,” playing Nigerian-born forensic pathologist Dr. Bennet Omalu, who published the first studies on Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy, only to be discredited by the NFL.

    Still, the NFL did not participate in the film. Landesman had set up a meeting with the league, then canceled it.

    “Although this movie’s not a piece of journalism, it is exposing a very uncomfortable, and to the NFL, a very dangerous truth. And I knew that they were not going to be pleased,” he says. “So I didn’t want to subvert myself. I didn’t want to get in my own way and reach out to someone who is not going to be party to the project. There was just no purpose.”

    Watch the trailer below:

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  • Will Smith Takes on the NFL in First ‘Concussion’ Trailer

    Are you ready for some football … brain injuries as diagnosed by Will Smith in “Concussion”?

    The A-lister plays real-life forensic pathologist and neuropathologist Dr. Bennet Omalu, who discovered chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) in the brains of NFL players and fought for the truth to be known. Peter Landesman (“Parkland”) directed “Concussion,” which was produced by Ridley Scott, based on the 2009 GQ article “Game Brain.”

    Peter King just shared the movie’s first trailer in his Sports Illustrated column:

    “Concussion” opens on Christmas Day, so maybe we can expect Will Smith’s name to come up on Oscar lists, for his portrayal of the Nigeria-born doctor. The movie also stars Alec Baldwin, Luke Wilson, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Arliss Howard, Paul Reiser, David Morse, and Albert Brooks.

    Watch the trailer.

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  • Will Smith Collides with the NFL in ‘Concussion’

    If Tom Cruise thought fighting The Syndicate was tough, he should be grateful he’s not in Will Smith’s shoes.

    In the upcoming film “Concussion,” Smith tangles with an all-powerful, shadowy organization of violence and doom that goes by the initials “N.F.L.,” a trailer released Monday shows.

    Smith plays Dr. Bennet Omalu, the forensic pathologist who discovered a chronic brain injury linked to professional football players, only to find himself attacked and discredited by the league, portrayed in the trailer as something akin to the Evil Empire.

    The film dramatizes events in the powerful Frontline documentary, “A League of Denial: The NFL’s Concussion Crisis,” which portrayed the NFL as going to great lengths to suppress research and discredit experts like Omalu who linked the violence of the game with longterm health problems.

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