Picture credit: Alamy
Netflix is teaming up with an Oscar-winning directing duo for a new sports drama feature film currently in development at the streaming service, which adapts the true and inspiring story of Team Hoyt.
We first became aware of this project a few months ago, when Netflix registered a movie screenplay based on the true story, produced by Religion of Sports. Now, Deadline scooped that Nat Faxon and Jim Rash have boarded the project as directors. The duo, frequent collaborators behind the camera as well as having successful careers in front of the camera (primarily in the comedy genre), have previously teamed up on the Oscar-winning The Descendants, which netted the award for best screenplay, which they wrote with Alexander Payne. They’ve also worked together on the 2013 Sundance movie The Way, Way Back and more recently on 2020’s Downhill.
Grant Thompson, best known for his 2015 movie McFarland, USA, and producing The Hating Game, is behind the script.
Tom Brady is among the producers on the project working under his banner, Religion of Sports. Netflix has previously collaborated with Brady’s Religion of Sports on the critically acclaimed Simone Biles series, “Rising.” The company has also worked on other unscripted projects for Hulu and Showtime, covering sports icons like Serena Williams and Kobe Bryant.
Kevin J. Walsh is producing the film, having last worked with Netflix on the 2019 film Earthquake Bird, under his banner, The Walsh Company. He previously worked with Faxon and Rash on that 2013 Oscar-winning movie in addition to having credits on films like Death on the Nile and Napoleon. Gotham Chopra and Ryan Stowell are also producing under the Religion of Sports banner. Russell Hoyt will co-produce in collaboration with the Hoyt family estate.
What will Team Hoyt be about?
Team Hoyt was the remarkable father-son team of Dick Hoyt and Rick Hoyt from Holland, Massachusetts, who together completed over 1,100 endurance events, including 72 marathons including a few dozen times for the Boston Marathon in addition to half a dozen Ironman triathlons. Dick towed, peddled or pushed Rick through each event whether that’s in buggy, bike or boat. Their extraordinary perseverance earned them induction into the Ironman Hall of Fame and ESPN’s Jimmy V Award, and inspired millions by showing that “life goes on no matter your disability.”
Rick was born with cerebral palsy after complications at birth left him unable to control his muscles. Despite doctors’ bleak prognoses, his parents treated him like any other child, until at 11 he was fitted with a communication device that revealed his intelligence and allowed him to attend public school. He went on to earn a degree in special education from Boston University and worked on assistive-technology research at Boston College’s EagleEyes Project, helping to develop systems that give people with disabilities a voice.
The movie’s official logline is as follows: “From marathons to Ironmans, the story follows Dick and Rick Hoyt, who defy the odds as a racing duo, while the family’s matriarch, Judy, wages her own war for disability rights in schools—chronicling an extraordinary family’s fight for inclusion, love, and the power of belief.”
While Dick and Rick are no longer with us (they passed away in 2021 and 2023, respectively), their inspiration lives on through The Hoyt Foundation, which still actively participates in marathons across the US. In addition, they recently held the Team Hoyt Memorial Race, which occurred on May 24th, 2025, honoring the legacy of Dick and Rick.
Additional reading can be found on the Wikipedia page for the duo and on the official Team Hoyte website.
Team Hoyt win the Jimmy V Perseverance Award at the 2013 ESPY Awards show at the Nokia Theatre L.A. Live in Los Angeles on July 17, 2013. Picture Credit: UPI/Jim Ruymen
We’ll keep you posted on Team Hoyt as soon as we have more information.
