Stephen Curry-Backed Animated Film “GOAT” Hits Theaters After 7½-Year Production
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Los Angeles — The basketball-inspired animated feature “GOAT,” developed over the past seven and a half years by director Tyree Dillihay and Sony Pictures Animation, opens nationwide on Friday.
Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry serves as executive producer and voices one of the main characters, joining an ensemble that features current and former NBA and WNBA stars. Work on the project began in September 2018, shortly after Curry’s Unanimous Media signed a multi-year partnership with Sony Pictures Entertainment.
The Underdog Story Line
The movie centers on Will, a small goat voiced by actor Caleb McLaughlin, who dreams of competing in a fictional, super-charged version of basketball known as “roarball.” Dillihay said Will’s journey mirrors Curry’s own path from undersized prospect to 12-time NBA All-Star, creating “the ultimate underdog story for the next generation.”
Inventing Roarball
Roarball reimagines the sport with exaggerated dimensions and loose rules. Courts stretch 120 yards, rims sit 15 feet high, and surfaces range from red clay laced with entangling vines to ice sheets in Arctic arenas. Players shift between two legs and all fours and can handle the ball with hooves, claws, tails, or wings.
To keep the action authentic, Curry met one-on-one with Dillihay to discuss footwork, spacing, and pacing. Former Warriors teammate Andre Iguodala mapped out every in-game set, basing the sequences on real plays from his championship playbooks, the director said.
Character Roster
Dillihay deliberately cast several athletes in roles opposite their real-life personas:
- Stephen Curry voices Lenny, a towering giraffe who dominates defensively.
- Dwyane Wade portrays Rosette, a bull whose name nods to co-director Adam Rosette and Wade’s 2016-17 stint with the Chicago Bulls.
- Andre Iguodala appears as Iggy the Ref, a zebra tasked with calling fouls rather than running plays.
- A’ja Wilson plays Kouyate, a crocodile antagonist written to spotlight the four-time WNBA MVP.
- Angel Reese lends her voice to Propp, a polar bear named after Sony Animation head of story Keely Propp. Despite her on-court reputation, Dillihay said Reese is “far from a trash talker” and had to be coaxed into ad-libbing game banter.
- Kevin Love becomes Daskas, a gorilla who dishes out verbal jabs—a contrast to the Utah Jazz forward’s mild demeanor.
Message Behind the Movie
For Dillihay, who grew up in Inglewood, California, the film carries a personal reminder: “Dream big. Your dreams have no ceiling,” he said. “I’m the fourth Black director in cinematic history to helm a major animated film, so I’m proof that dreams come true.”
“GOAT” arrives in theaters Friday, delivering a high-energy blend of fantasy and basketball aimed at family audiences.
Source: ESPN
