First we got the Tom Brady version of ESPN's "The Last Dance." Now it looks like the Tom Brady version of HBO's "Winning Time" could be on the way.
A scripted limited series based on the life and career of the New England Patriots legend is reportedly in development, according to Deadline. The project will be an adaption of the book "12: The Inside Story of Tom Brady's Fight for Redemption" by Casey Sherman and Dave Wedge.
The screenwriters working on the series are Paul Tamasy and Eric Johnson, a duo that has previously worked on adaptions of Massachusetts-related books from Sherman and Wedge into "Boston Strong" and "Patriots Day." They also co-wrote the screenplay of "The Fighter," another story about a Boston athlete in former boxing champ Micky Ward.
There is no mention of Brady being involved in the production, unlike the "Man in the Arena: Tom Brady" docuseries he co-produced with ESPN in 2021.
While the book being adapted focuses on Brady's journey through the Deflategate scandal, the scripted series will reportedly also document his rise from sixth-round draft pick to Super Bowl champion, his relationship with Bill Belichick and the Aaron Hernandez and Spygate scandals. Brady has obviously had an eventful career, and the series apparently wants to tackle everything.
From Deadline:
"The New England Patriots dominated the professional sports landscape for 20 years," Tamasy and Johnson said. "Our series will bring the audience inside Gillette Stadium, better known as Fortress Foxboro, to shed new light on the thrilling, historic come-from-behind victories; the dark side of success; and building a culture of winning at all costs."
Of course, the success of a non-fiction scripted series often comes down to who's telling the story. Part of what made "Winning Time" so compelling was the sense you were seeing the stuff the Showtime Lakers didn't want to talk about (when the show wasn't outright making things up), from the contentious locker room to a player trying to have a coach murdered.
In the case of the Brady series, it pretty much comes down to how much grace the production is willing to grant the man himself. It's hard to think of a sports series less compelling than one built on the message "Nothing was actually Tom Brady's fault."
Who will play Tom Brady in his scripted series?
There are plenty of actors who could potentially play Brady in a series. Taylor Kitsch of "Friday Night Lights" fame has been a popular visual comparison for years, and there is no shortage of prominent Boston actors who might at least knock on the door (looking at you Mark Wahlberg).
On the other hand, if "Winning Time" was able to find a young, unknown actor who could approximate the charisma of Magic Johnson in Quincy Isaiah, the same can probably be done with Brady. With all respect to the future Hall of Famer, there isn't exactly a shortage of actors in Hollywood who fall into Brady's domain of tall and conventionally handsome.
It could be a long time before we hearing any real casting news, though.
