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Kurt Warner’s story ready for the silver screen

BY JOSHUA WEISBLY Progress Staff Writer

For those who live in Arizona and bleed Cardinal red, there are a handful of names that are synonymous with the team. Former quarterback Kurt Warner is one of them.

On Christmas Day, audiences will learn the Super Bowl winner’s backstory in the �ilm “American Underdog: The Kurt Warner Story.” It takes a deep dive into Warner’s life before he joined the St. Louis Rams and the beginning of his NFL career. “American Underdog” tells the inspirational true story of Warner (Zachary Levi), who went from a stock boy at a grocery store to a two-time NFL MVP, Super Bowl champion, and Hall of Fame quarterback. The �ilm centers on Warner’s years of challenges and setbacks that could have derailed his aspirations to become an NFL player. It seemed out of reach until he meets his future wife, Brenda (Anna Paquin), and receives encouragement from his family, coaches and teammates. Warner attended college at the University of Northern Iowa and went undrafted. He tried out for the Green Bay Packers but landed with the Arena Football League’s Iowa Barnstormers.

Following that stint, Warner made his way back to the NFL �inding a home in St. Louis with the Rams, where he would eventually lead the team to a Super Bowl. The American gambling company FanDuel offered fans the chance to meet Warner and Levi at WestWorld of Scottsdale in early December. “With the movie coming out with Kurt Warner, there is a lot of interest in that movie and it made a lot of sense to bring him along for this,” said Jeff Forvour, FanDuel marketing director.

Anna Paquin stars as Brenda Warner and Zachary Levi as Kurt Warner in “American

Underdog: The Kurt Warner Story.” (Photo by Michael Kubeisy/Lionsgate; © 2021 Lionsgate)

Zachary Levi, who plays Kurt Warner in “American Underdog: The Kurt Warner Story” and the former Cardinals quarterback on the set of the film. “He and Zach were more than happy to come down and do this with us, which was really cool.”

Levi — who previously starred in “Shazam” and TV’s “Chuck” — called the Warner role remarkable. “I was watching his story go down in real time, back in ’99, 2000,” Levi said. “And I think, like most of the country or at least anyone in the country who was paying attention, I was so blown away and inspired by it.”

Warner hadn’t previously met Levi, but he was curious as to how he would work out. “I don’t know anything about acting cause these guys do a great job, but you always feel like you want the person on the screen to be authentic,” Warner said. “You want people to see them and go, man, I really buy into that.”

But it didn’t take long for worries to fade. “Once I got to know Zach, I thought he was going to do a great job with it because it’s true to who he is, on top of his great acting skills,” Warner said. “Without a doubt, I’m extremely happy with how it played out.” Those who are hoping to see Warner don a Cardinals uniform in the movie will, unfortunately, be disappointed as the �ilm stops during his time at the Rams. “The Cardinals’ years are in that second chapter, such a special chapter for me,” Warner said. “But, it just seems like this is the right time to stop this movie and where it’s going to inspire people and how it’s going to connect with people.”

Levi made a quick joke about it. “The sequel, ‘American Underdog: Electric Boogaloo,’ is going to just blow people’s minds,” Levi said with a laugh referring to the 1984 breakdancing movie. “It’s going to be you (Warner) and Larry Fitzgerald breaking. You have no idea.”