In an overall deal with Apple, Skydance and Berlanti Schechter Productions are set to further develop and produce their upcoming sports drama film Dallas Sting with Matthew McConaughey expected to star as the lead role, according to an exclusive from Deadline. The film will be directed by Kari Skoglund.
Based on a true story, Dallas Sting will center on a group of high school girls from Dallas, Texas as they head to China in order to compete as the ultimate underdogs against some of the best women’s soccer teams from various countries across the world. In 1984, in an attempt to strengthen the relationship between the United States and China, America was invited to send its women’s soccer team to compete in the world championship.
However, the U.S. had no official women’s soccer team to compete. A nationwide search for a team led to a team in Dallas, Texas called The Sting which consisted of a group of teenagers led by their coach, Bill Kinder. The film will tell the inspirational underdog story of how The Sting, whose name was inspired by the 1973 Robert Redford movie, managed to compete against some of the best soccer players the world had ever seen.
McConaughey, who previously won an Academy Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role for his role in the acclaimed 2013 film Dallas Buyers Club, will play Kinder, the coach who leads the group of teens to compete in the world championship. His real-life counterpart had no prior coaching experience beforehand, which could lead to some interesting character development for the film. While it remains unknown how closely the upcoming project will follow the true story it is inspired by, with a talented actor such as McConaughey in the lead, Dallas Sting could end up being a compelling sports drama for audiences when it releases some time in the near future.
The film’s script will be written by Liz Flahive and Carly Mensch, both of which previously co-created and co-wrote GLOW, a Netflix original series. The film, whose rights were acquired in an auction, will be produced by David Ellison, Dana Goldberg, and Don Granger of Skydance alongside Greg Berlanti, Sarah Schechter, and Robbie Rogers. Production for the film is expected to begin some time later this year in New Orleans.
Dallas Sting currently has no set release date yet. Check out our interview with McConaughey about the making of Sing 2 below:
