If there was still any question whether the Kevin James-starring film about NFL coach Sean Payton and the New Orleans Saints bounty scandal would take the situation seriously, the trailer for Netflix’s HomeTeam, which dropped Tuesday, cleared that up.
Produced by Adam Sandler’s Happy Madison Productions, HomeTeam makes a family comedy out of the late 2000s Bountygate scandal, in which the NFL leveled some of the most severe punishments in the league’s history after it was discovered the Saints were paying bonuses for injuring other teams’ players. Payton was suspended for the entire 2012 season.
And that is where the film apparently picks up. James plays a fictionalized version of the NFL coach, who helps coach his son’s youth football team — a group that is, of course, awful — during his suspension. (The actual Payton did indeed serve as the offensive coordinator for his son’s sixth-grade team in Argyle, Texas, during his time away from the Saints.)
The preview for the film, which also stars Taylor Lautner, shows James’ version of Payton aiming to become a better father as he tries to help the rag-tag youth football team get its act together, a la 1994’s LittleGiants.
The cast also includes Rob Schneider, Jackie Sandler, Gary Valentine, Tait Blum, Maxwell Simkins, Jacob Perez, Bryant Tardy, Manny Magnus and Liam Kyle.
As previously reported by NBC’s Peter King, the actual Payton read and made changes to the script.
HomeTeam premieres on Netflix on Jan. 28, 2022.
Watch the trailer below.
THR Newsletters
Sign up for THR news straight to your inbox every day
