Backstory
Bobby Sanders is a fictionalized character drawn from Bill Keenan’s own experiences. In Odd Man Rush, after graduating from Harvard, Sanders heads to the European minor hockey leagues, chasing the slim possibility of proving himself and earning a place in the NHL. His story unfolds with an observant restraint and is marked by moral ambiguity, an avoidance of sensationalism, and an attention to the slow accumulation of pressure rather than dramatic climaxes. [1] [2]
In Bull Run, Tom Blyth brings a similar tone to Bobby Sanders, delivering his direct-to-camera lines with the bemused detachment of someone watching a system collapse in real time and calmly deciding to record it. His performance threads comedy and vulnerability with precision; Bobby isn't merely mocking the absurdity around him, but grappling with a genuine existential anxiety about whether participation itself makes him complicit in something corrosive. The fourth-wall breaks externalize that conflict, allowing Blyth to register the distance between Bobby's private awareness and his public performance at work—a tension that generates humor without sacrificing thematic seriousness. [3]
Film overviews
Odd Man Rush is the 2020 film which introduces Bobby Sanders. It was directed by Doug Dearth and produced by Todd Slater, Jonathan M. Black [4] Grant Slater, Karen Baldwin, and Howard Baldwin. [4] The film is based on Bill Keenan's 2016 memoir, Odd Man Rush , about growing up in the 1990s as a New York Rangers fan, playing college hockey for Harvard and ending up in minor pro leagues in Sweden and Germany when injuries disrupted his dreams of an NHL career. [5] [6] It was released on September 1, 2020. [7] [6]
Bull Run is a 2024 American film (and sequel to Odd Man Rush) directed by Alfredo Barrios Jr. and produced by Doug Ellin (the creator of Entourage ), Howard Baldwin, Karen Baldwin and Bill Keenan. [8] Based on Bill Keenan's 2020 bestselling memoir, Discussion Materials , the film stars Tom Blyth [9] and Chris Diamantopoulos.
It premiered at the Newport Beach Film Festival on October 19, 2024. [10] [11] The film was released by Vertical (film company) in theaters and VOD on November 14, 2025. [12]
