Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story is a 2004 sports comedy film written and directed by Rawson Marshall Thurber and starring Vince Vaughn, Ben Stiller, Christine Taylor, and Rip Torn. The film follows a group of unlikely misfits who enter a Las Vegas dodgeball tournament in the hopes of winning $50,000 to save their cherished local gym from being taken over by corporate health fitness chain Globo Gym.
Theatrically released by 20th Century Fox on June 18, 2004, the film received generally positive reviews from critics and grossed $168.4 million on a $20 million budget.
When Peter LaFleur defaults on the mortgage for his small, dilapidated, financially struggling and understaffed gym Average Joe's, his cocky and vindictive business rival White Goodman, who owns Globo Gym across the street, purchases it, planning to foreclose on and demolish Average Joe's to build a new auxiliary parking structure for his members unless Peter can raise $50,000 in 30 days. Goodman attempts to seduce attorney Katherine "Kate" Veatch, who is handling his account; repulsed, she cites conflict of interest (COI) to rebuff his disturbing advances.
Peter, gym employees Dwight Baumgarten and Owen Dittman, and members Steve "Pirate" Cowan, Justin Redman, and Gordon Pibb unite to raise the required money. After an impromptu car wash suggested by Owen fails, Gordon suggests entering a dodgeball tournament in Las Vegas with a $50,000 grand prize. Justin obtains a 1950s-era training film featuring Irish-American dodgeball legend Patches O'Houlihan, which the group watches before the sub-regional qualifiers the following day. Girl Scout Troop 417 easily defeats them, but one member's use of 3 separate types of anabolic steroids and a low-grade beaver tranquilizer results in their disqualification, which leads to Average Joe's being named as the winner by default.
Having spied on Average Joe's using a hidden camera in a cutout of himself, Goodman forms his own dodgeball team, the Globo Gym Purple Cobras, and surprises Gordon by revealing that his extremely personal friendship with the chancellor allowed him to bypass the mandatory qualification match. After watching their confrontation, Patches, now an elderly man who uses a wheelchair, approaches Peter, volunteering to coach the team. Patches' unusual training regimen involves having them dodge wrenches, oncoming cars, and his constant insults. Kate demonstrates skill at the sport but declines to join the team, citing COI. Goodman arrives at Kate's house uninvited and announces that he misled her bosses about her stealing and drinking on the job, thus getting her fired from her law firm and freeing him to date her. Enraged, but now free of COI, she rejects Goodman and joins the Average Joe's team.
Despite early setbacks, the team advances to the final round against Globo Gym. The night before the match, a falling sign in the casino kills Patches. Returning to his room, Peter encounters an uninvited Goodman, who greedily offers him $100,000 for the deed to Average Joe's, claiming that Peter will inevitably cause its closure. Demoralized and anxious that the team will lose without Patches's motivation, Peter chastises Steve's pirate behavior upon returning to the group, causing Steve's departure. On the day of the final, Justin assists his classmate and love interest Amber in a cheerleading competition after his bully and rival Derek becomes severely injured, leaving Average Joe's short of players. Peter briefly encounters Lance Armstrong, who restores his morale and rejoins his team, but he and Justin return too late; Average Joe's has already forfeited. After Gordon discovers that a majority of the judges can overturn the forfeiture, a tie-breaking vote from Chuck Norris reinstates the team.
After an intense game, Peter and Goodman have a sudden-death match. Inspired by Patches' spirit, Peter blindfolds himself, evades Goodman's throw, and strikes him in the face, winning the championship and the prize money. As Average Joe’s is celebrating however, Goodman nullifies the victory, revealing that Peter sold Average Joe's to him the previous night, but Peter explains he used Goodman's $100,000 to bet on Average Joe's winning; with the odds against them at 50 to 1, he collects $5 million. Peter then reveals his intention to invest in a controlling interest in Globo Gym, making him the owner of Globo Gym and anything it owns, which now includes Average Joe's, and he fires White. Steve returns, appearing more normal, but revives his pirate persona when Peter reveals their winnings as "buried treasure." Joyce, a friend of Kate's who caught an earlier flight from Guam to witness the final match, arrives and kisses her passionately, shocking Peter. Kate then reveals her bisexuality and kisses Peter similarly. Peter is in a polyamorous relationship with Kate and Joyce, Justin and Amber get married with a baby on the way, and Owen begins dating Fran Stalinovskovichdaviddivichski from the Globo Gym team.
During the credits, Peter advertises youth dodgeball classes at a newly-renovated Average Joe's on television. Meanwhile, Goodman is now morbidly obese, watching television and whining that he could've won the tournament while also cursing Chuck Norris.
Cast
Vince Vaughn as Peter "Pete" LaFleur, the very laid-back and casual owner of Average Joe's Gym whose lack of attention leads to its foreclosure.
Ben Stiller as White Goodman, the arrogant owner of Globo Gym who is trying to buy out Average Joe's so that he can demolish it and build a parking lot and aggressively pursues a relationship with Kate despite her constant rejections. He used to be morbidly obese back in the 1980s.
Christine Taylor as Katherine "Kate" Veatch, a very athletic real estate and tax lawyer who is assigned by the bank to sort out the finances at Average Joe's Gym and ends up joining the Average Joe's dodgeball team after losing her job thanks to Goodman.
Rip Torn as Patches O'Houlihan, a retired seven-time ADAA dodgeball All-Star who coaches the Average Joe's team and had been confined to a mobile wheelchair.
Chris Williams as Dwight Baumgarten, an employee at Average Joe's
Missi Pyle as Fran Stalinovskovichdaviddivichski, a professional dodgeball player from Romanovia, playing for the Globo Gym team, who becomes Owen's girlfriend
Jamal Duff as Me'Shell Jones, White Goodman's "Fitness Consigliere" who carries out Goodman's orders
Gary Cole as Cotton McKnight, one of the TV announcers for the dodgeball tournament
The narrator of a video that Goodman watches while fondling a piece of pizza
Cameo appearances
Lance Armstrong as himself, he gives Pete a pep talk enough for him to continue in the tournament[7]
Chuck Norris as himself, he is also depicted as a member of the dodgeball judiciary board[8]
David Hasselhoff as himself, he was depicted as the coach of the Blitzkrieg[9]
Production
Ben Stiller's character, White Goodman, was an intentional copy-and-paste of his character Tony Perkis Jr. from the film Heavyweights. Stiller opted to simply redo his performance believing that no one had seen that film, but learned too late that the movie had a large cult following. He added that Perkis was "definitely a first or second cousin to [Goodman]" and had no regrets over doing an alternate portrayal of him.[10]
When the film was screened to test audiences, the original ending had Average Joe's lose to Globo Gym in the final match. After the ending was viewed negatively by the test audiences, the sudden death match and Average Joe's winning the dodgeball tournament were added alongside White going back to obesity.[11][12]
Copyright lawsuit
In 2005, two New York City screenwriters, David Price and Ashoka Thomas, filed suit in federal court against Fox and Thurber, claiming copyright infringement of an unproduced screenplay they had written, Dodgeball: The Movie, by Thurber and Fox. They alleged there were a number of similarities in the plots of the two screenplays, and that Thurber may have had access to their screenplay, which was finished a month before his and submitted to an agent whose assistant he was acquainted with.[13] Lawyers for the defendants dismissed some of the allegations as coincidental. They said that both screenplays were the work of writers who used common formulaic elements. Judge Shira Scheindlin denied the defense motion for summary judgment and ordered a jury trial.[14][15] The suit was later settled out of court.[16][17]
Reception
Box office
In its first week, the film grossed over $29 million, and would go on to a domestic gross of $114.3 million,[18] and a worldwide total of $168.4 million.[2]
Critical response
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 71% of 165 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 6.3/10.The website's consensus reads: "Proudly profane and splendidly silly, Dodgeball is a worthy spiritual successor to the goofball comedies of the 1980s."[19]Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 55 out of 100, based on 34 critics, indicating "mixed or average" reviews.[20] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B+" on an A+ to F scale.[21]
Slant Magazine dismissed the film as "a less-than-one-joke film",[22] while TV Guide remarked that Ben Stiller "doesn't know when to stop".[23] Other critics, such as The Boston Globe, praised Stiller's satirical take on male virility and praised the chemistry between Vince Vaughn and Christine Taylor.[24] Joe Morgenstern of The Wall Street Journal initially declined to review the film, believing it was not worthy of his time. However, after reviewing the DVD, he changed his view, writing, "Mea culpa, mea culpa. Rawson Marshall Thurber's debut feature, starring Ben Stiller opposite Vince Vaughn, is erratic, imbecilic if not completely idiotic, inconsequential in even the small scheme of things, and thoroughly entertaining".[25]Roger Ebert gave the film a three stars out of four rating in his Chicago Sun-Times review and writes "in a miraculous gift to the audience, 20th Century-Fox does not reveal all of the best gags in its trailer."[26]
On April 22, 2013, it was announced that 20th Century Fox has started developing a sequel to the film, with Clay Tarver writing the script and Ben Stiller and Vince Vaughn returning to star.[27] However, Ben Stiller later stated that he was not aware a Dodgeball sequel was happening.[28] A reunion video featuring the cast entitled Play Dodgeball with Ben Stiller was released online in June 2017, announcing a competition to raise funds for the Stiller Foundation.[29]
On April 27, 2023, it was announced that 20th Century Studios had re-begun production on a sequel, with actor Vince Vaughn set to return, and possibly serve as a producer on the new film.[30]
On August 8, 2017, ESPN paid homage to its lampooned portrayal in Dodgeball by airing a day-long "ESPN8: The Ocho" marathon on its college sports channel ESPNU. In the spirit of the programming depicted in the film, it consisted of lesser-known and unconventional sports and competitions—including trampoline dodgeball, darts, disc golf, kabaddi, and roller derby.[31][32] The stunt was reprised the following two years on ESPN2, and also included airings of Dodgeball.[33][34]
Due to a lack of live sports programming during the COVID-19 pandemic, ESPN announced on March 22, 2020, that it would reprise the stunt earlier than scheduled on ESPN2.[35] It did it on May 2, 2020, on ESPN, and then August 8, 2020, on ESPN2 as well as the Big Screen in Fortnite Party Royale. A collection of sports that were featured on ESPN8, as well as the ESPN8 broadcast on these said networks, were available on the ESPN app.
The program was held again on ESPN2 on August 3, 2023.[36][37] The channel also received a cameo in the 2024 Paramount+ mini-series Knuckles.[38]
The DVD and Blu-ray releases all contain various outtakes and deleted scenes including an alternate ending as well as an infamous "Easter Egg" in the form of a spoof director's commentary.
The directors commentary track starts out in the traditional fashion with the director and co-stars but soon adds in extra characters and descends into a largely unrelated comedy experience. Halfway through a seemingly chaotic recording, it stops and is replaced by the directors' commentary for There's Something About Mary.
Benjamin Edward Meara Stiller is an American actor, comedian, and filmmaker. He is the son of the comedians and actors Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara. Stiller was a member of a group of comedic actors colloquially known as the Frat Pack. His films have grossed more than $2.6 billion in Canada and the United States, with an average of $79 million per film. Throughout his career, he has received various awards and honors, including an Emmy Award, a Directors Guild of America Award, a Britannia Award and a Teen Choice Award.
Christine Joan Taylor Stiller is an American actress. She is known for playing Marcia Brady in The Brady Bunch Movie and A Very Brady Sequel, for her roles in The Craft, The Wedding Singer, Zoolander, and Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story, and for her television roles in Hey Dude, Arrested Development, and Search Party.
Vincent Anthony Vaughn is an American actor and comedian. He is known for starring as a leading man in numerous comedy films during the late 1990s and 2000s. He was nominated for a Screen Actors Guild Award and a Saturn Award.
Jason Kent Bateman is an American actor and director. Widely known for his roles as Michael Bluth in the Fox / Netflix sitcom Arrested Development (2003-2019) and Marty Byrde in the Netflix crime drama series Ozark (2017–2022), as well as hosting the podcast SmartLess, alongside Will Arnett and Sean Hayes. Bateman is known for his numerous comedy films, and has received numerous awards including a Golden Globe Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, three Screen Actors Guild Awards and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Missi Pyle is an American actress and singer. She has appeared in a number of films, including Galaxy Quest (1999), Josie and the Pussycats (2001), Bringing Down the House (2003), Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story (2004), Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005), Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay (2008), The Artist (2011), Gone Girl (2014), Captain Fantastic (2016), and Ma (2019).
The Break-Up is a 2006 American romantic comedy-drama film directed by Peyton Reed, and starring Vince Vaughn and Jennifer Aniston. It was written by Jay Lavender and Jeremy Garelick from a story by them and Vaughn, and produced by Universal Pictures.
Robert Michael Cicherillo is an American IFBB professional bodybuilder.
Jason Russell "Rusty" Joiner is an American male fashion model, fitness model and actor.
Deborah Liebling is an American entertainment executive and film producer. She was formally President of Production of Universal Pictures. Previously, she was a Senior Production Executive at 20th Century Fox.
Red Hour Productions is an American film production company operated by actor Ben Stiller and formerly with producer Stuart Cornfeld. In the past, Red Hour has had first-look deals with New Line Cinema, and currently has an exclusive first-look feature deal with 20th Century Fox.
Ocho is the Spanish word for eight.
Four Christmases is a 2008 American Christmas comedy-drama film starring Vince Vaughn and Reese Witherspoon with Robert Duvall, Jon Favreau, Mary Steenburgen, Dwight Yoakam, Tim McGraw, Kristin Chenoweth, Jon Voight, and Sissy Spacek in supporting roles. The film is director Seth Gordon's first studio feature film. It tells the story of a couple who must travel to four family parties after their vacation plans get canceled due to dense fog. The film was produced by New Line Cinema and Spyglass Entertainment and released by Warner Bros. Pictures on November 26, 2008.
The Dilemma is a 2011 American comedy-drama film directed by Ron Howard, written by Allan Loeb and starring Vince Vaughn and Kevin James. The film follows savvy businessman Ronny (Vaughn) and genius engineer Nick (James), who are best friends and partners in an auto design firm. They are pursuing a project to make their firm famous. Ronny sees Nick's wife Geneva kissing another man. Ronny seeks out answers and has to figure out how to tell Nick about what he saw while working with him to complete their critical presentation.
Peter Teschner is an American film editor. He is best known as the editor of comedy films such as Road Trip, Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story, Borat, and Going the Distance. Teschner is a 1980 graduate of Columbia College Chicago and in 2006 he was honored with the school's Alumni of the Year award for his Outstanding Contribution to a Field of Motion Picture Editing.
The Watch is a 2012 American science fiction action-comedy film directed by Akiva Schaffer and written by Jared Stern, Seth Rogen, and Evan Goldberg. It stars Ben Stiller, Vince Vaughn, Jonah Hill, and Richard Ayoade. The film follows Evan (Stiller), Bob (Vaughn), Franklin (Hill), and Jamarcus (Ayoade), a group of neighbors who form a suburban neighborhood watch group. When they uncover an alien plot threatening the world, they are forced into action. This was the final film role of R. Lee Ermey, who died on April 15, 2018.
The Internship is a 2013 American comedy film directed by Shawn Levy, written by Vince Vaughn and Jared Stern, and produced by Vaughn and Levy. The film stars Vaughn and Owen Wilson as recently laid-off salesmen who attempt to compete with much younger and more technically skilled applicants for a job at Google. Rose Byrne, Max Minghella, Aasif Mandvi, Josh Brener, Dylan O'Brien, Tobit Raphael, Tiya Sircar, Josh Gad, and Jessica Szohr also star.
Unfinished Business is a 2015 American comedy film directed by Ken Scott and written by Steven Conrad. The film stars Vince Vaughn, Tom Wilkinson, Dave Franco, Sienna Miller, Nick Frost, and James Marsden. It was released on March 6, 2015. The film was panned by critics and was a box office bomb, only grossing $14.4 million on a budget of $35 million.
Underdogs is a 2013 football sports drama film directed by Doug Dearth. The film is loosely based on true events which occurred in and around Canton, Ohio.
The Binge is a 2020 American parody film directed by Jeremy Garelick and written by Jordan VanDina. A parody of The Purge, the film stars Skyler Gisondo, Eduardo Franco, Dexter Darden, Vince Vaughn, Grace Van Dien and Zainne Saleh.
ESPN8 The Ocho is an annual special program block showcasing seldom-seen obscure sports that airs on the networks of ESPN Inc.
↑ "Complaint". United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. June 2005. Archived from the original on April 16, 2009. Retrieved July 20, 2011.
↑ "Intellectual Property". Davis & Gilbert LLP. 2011. Archived from the original on October 24, 2020. Retrieved July 20, 2011. We successfully represented the plaintiffs in a high-profile copyright-infringement lawsuit in which two screenwriters alleged that the hit movie Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story infringed the copyright in their screenplay Dodgeball: The Movie.
↑ "Michael B. Carlinsky". Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan. 2011. Archived from the original on December 2, 2014. Retrieved July 20, 2011. Represented Fox Entertainment Group, Twentieth Century Fox and other defendants against copyright infringement claims arising out of the Ben Stiller movie Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story ... Obtained a favorable settlement.
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