Depending on how much football or Golden Girls you’ve watched in your life, the plotline in the new flick 80 for Brady may seem unlikely. Perhaps not as far-fetched as the Patriots rallying from down 28-3 to win 35-28 in the largest Super Bowl comeback ever, but a long shot nonetheless. But is 80 for Brady as true as that unreal-yet-real Super Bowl win, the fifth of an eventual record seven for Brady, who stars and serves as a producer for the flick? Unlike famously curt Bill Belichick, the people involved with 80 for Brady have been more open about the flick’s origins.
Is 80 for Brady based on a true story?
Yes. 80 for Brady is inspired by a true story of four of the New England Patriots’—and, more specifically, former quarterback Tom Brady’s—biggest fans. In an interview with PEOPLE, Lily Tomlin, one of the film’s stars, spilled that the movie’s real-life inspiration hyped up to take the role. “I’d seen a video of one of the women getting a call from Tom Brady to tell her that her grandson had pitched the idea to his agent, and he was so taken with the story he was going to make a movie about their adventure,” gushed Tomlin, who has seven Emmy’s in her trophy case. Tomlin, 83, fell helmet-over-cleats for Grandma. “I loved this woman,” continued Tomlin, who reunited with Grace and Frankie co-star Jane Fonda for the film. “Her humor, her sweetness. I imagined my own mother getting a call from Tom Brady and the thrill she would get from that, and then to hear a movie would be made—my mother would be over-the-moon excited.”
Who is 80 for Brady based on?
80 for Brady is based on four women, played by Tomlin, Fonda, Rita Moreno and Sally Field. They decide on a whim to head down to Houston to see Tom Brady play in the Big Game, thinking it might be his last (spoiler alert: He played in and won two more after his legendary Super Bowl LI performance). In the official trailer, you can see the four watching a game while discussing Brady, who was 40 at the time and basically “80 in people years.” Since they are “actually 80 in people years” and “tired of their same old boring lives,” they set off to try to score tickets to the game. Shenanigans ensue, including dancing, eating contests and a face-to-face meeting with Rob Gronkowski (played by Gronk himself). Will they watch the game from the seats or the parking lot? You can find out on Feb. 3. Next, find out what ’80s pop icons collaborated on an 80 For Brady song.
