Whereas Keanu Reeves is finest recognized for the motion style, considered one of his extra heartbreaking dramas is about to get a brand new streaming house.
Hailing from once-future Paramount chief Brian Robbins, Hardball served as an adaptation of Daniel Coyle’s 1994 novel of the identical title, led by Reeves as playing addict Conor O’Neill who, with no recourse for his money owed to 2 bookies, begins teaching a youth baseball workforce in a housing mission of Chicago to make the cash wanted to take action. Confronting each their private and academic issues, Conor finds himself additionally rising alongside the way in which.
Now, 25 years after the movie hit theaters, Hardball is about to get a brand new streaming house on Paramount+. The R-rated sports activities drama, which was largely not too long ago accessible to observe on Prime Video and Hoopla, will premiere on Paramount+ on February 1, in time for its exit from the latter platform on January 30.
Additionally starring Oscar nominee Diane Lane, Oscar nominee John Hawkes, Fireplace within the Sky‘s D.B. Sweeney and potential Oscar winner Michael B. Jordan, Hardball was a modest success upon its launch, grossing simply over $44 million in opposition to its $32 million manufacturing price range. Hampered partially by having launched simply three days after the 9/11 assaults, in addition to a combined reception from critics, the R-rated drama did see a way more favorable response from audiences, netting it a 70% approval score on Rotten Tomatoes.
Hardball got here at an fascinating level in Reeves’ profession for a number of causes. Even whereas recent off the success of the unique Matrix, and having been within the means of getting ready for its back-to-back sequels, the star was step by step branching out past his motion style success with quite a lot of others, starting from the equally underrated Sam Raimi supernatural thriller The Reward to the Charlize Theron-co-starring romantic drama flop Candy November.
The extra notable was that Hardball was a part of Reeves getting in on the sports activities style’s resurgence on display within the ’90s and early 2000s. The identical period noticed the whole lot from Billy Bob Thornton’s Dangerous Information Bears remake to Adam Sandler’s Joyful Gilmore and Kevin Costner-led Tin Cup launch to various levels of crucial and industrial success. The baseball drama even marked Reeves’ second sports-centric mission on the time, coming after the 2000 soccer comedy The Replacements, which was equally met with a combined crucial response and have become a cult favourite by means of house video and cable broadcasts.
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As for Paramount+, Hardball‘s streaming premiere marks an fascinating addition to their roster of Reeves-starring titles. On prime of the R-rated drama, the platform can also be house to the well-received rom-com One thing’s Gotta Give, by which he starred alongside Jack Nicholson and late Oscar winner Diane Keaton, in addition to the 2024 blockbuster hit Sonic the Hedgehog 3, by which he performed iconic antihero Shadow the Hedgehog, a task he is anticipated to reprise in one of many franchise’s subsequent installments.
Even past Reeves, Hardball‘s new streaming house comes simply in time for Michael B. Jordan’s upcoming competitors for the Finest Actor trophy on the Oscars. The 2001 drama was Jordan’s second-ever movie and got here simply earlier than his breakout flip in HBO’s The Wire, all of which constructed to his newest success with Sinners. Having the mixed would possibly of Reeves, a younger Jordan and an emotional story at its core, the movie might very effectively turn into an instantaneous hit for Paramount+.
- Launch Date
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September 14, 2001
- Runtime
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106 minutes
- Director
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Brian Robbins
- Writers
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John Gatins
- Producers
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Erwin Stoff, Herb Positive aspects, Kevin McCormick, Michael Tollin