The Sandlot (franchise)
| The Sandlot | |
|---|---|
 Official franchise logo, as released in 1993. | |
| Based on | Original characters created by David Mickey Evans Robert Gunter |
| Distributed by | |
Release date | 1993–present |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Box office | $70,483,924 (2 films) |
The Sandlot franchise[1][2] consists of American coming-of-age sport-comedy installments including one theatrical film, and two straight-to-home video sequel films. The plot centers around preadolescent baseball fans, and their comedic adventures growing up as neighborhood friends. The first film was met with mixed-to-positive critical reception, while it was a financial success. Spawning a franchise, it has since been revered as a cult classic movie.[3][4][5]
The franchise will continue with a prequel film, and a legacy sequel television series in development. The prequel is intended to be a theatrical release, while the sequel series will be released via streaming service as an exclusive on Disney+.
Films
[edit]| Film | U.S. release date | Directed by | Screenplay by | Produced by |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Sandlot | April 7, 1993 | David Mickey Evans | David Mickey Evans & William S. Gilmore | Dale De La Torre and William S. Gilmore |
| The Sandlot 2 | May 3, 2005 | David Mickey Evans | David Bixler | |
| The Sandlot: Heading Home | May 1, 2007 | William Dear | Keith Mitchell & Allie Dvorin | Jon Kuyper |
| Untitled prequel | TBA | TBA | David Mickey Evans & Austin Reynolds | Colin Greten and Daria Cercek |
The Sandlot (1993)
[edit]In 1962 America, Scott "Scotty" Smalls moves to a new neighborhood with his mother and stepfather. Scotty struggles to make new friends. Eventually he follows a group of local boys to the small baseball diamond that they affectionately call "The Sandlot", and watches them play an improvised ballgame. As the majority of the gang at first picks on him, the star player of the team named Benjamin "Benny" Franklin Rodgriguez invites him to join them. All together they quickly learn that his sports skills are severely lacking. Together, they have pre-teen coming of age experiences and share comical incidents.
One day when the team wants to play baseball, but do not have all of the necessary equipment, Scotty volunteers his stepdad's collector's item prized ball. When Scotty immediately hits a home run into the fenced-in yard of Mr. Mertle next door, Scotty goes to retrieve it before his friends panickingly stop him from doing so. Together they tell him he will never get it back, explaining the legend of "The Beast" that lives there. Hopeless and helpless, Scotty exclaims that it was signed by George "Babe" Ruth Jr., the group of friends devise a plan to get the legendary ball back before Scotty's stepdad notices it is missing.[6][7]
The Sandlot 2 (2005)
[edit]In 1972 America, a new gang of young baseball-fanatics spend their free time at the Sandlot. One day they decide to try something different by launching an authentic NASA model rocket that belongs to one of their parents. When the object accidentally lands in the neighboring cluttered yard belonging to Mr. Mertle, the group of friends must conquer their fears and return the rocket before it's realized to be missing. Together they seek to outsmart the local folklore of the neighbor's dangerous pet that they call "The Great Fear".[8][9]
The Sandlot: Heading Home (2007)
[edit]Tommy "Santa" Santorelli is a Major League Baseball star for the Los Angeles Dodgers, whose hot streak and impressive stats have caused an increase in his egotistical nature. During a game, Tommy steps up to the plate intending to hit another home run. Instead, a speeding fastball beams him in the head, knocking him out. Waking up, Tommy finds that his conscious-self has inexplicably been transported back in time to 1976 in his preadolescent age, when he first discovered his love for baseball with his friends and coaches (Benny and Squints) at The Sandlot. Re-living his early memories of the sport, causes a change within him and reminds him of why he loves the game.[10]
Future
[edit]In 2018, a prequel film was revealed to be in development. David Mickey Evans serves as co-writer with Austin Reynolds. The plot takes place in the 1950s. Colin Greten and Daria Cercek will serve as producers for the project.[11][12]
Television
[edit]In April 2019, a sequel television series was announced to be in development as a Disney+ exclusive streaming show. David Mickey Evans will serve as creator, screenwriter, executive producer, and showrunner for the series. Each of the original cast members are confirmed to reprise their roles from the first film. The series takes place during the 1980s with each of the original characters, now in their 30's, coaching their collective children.[13][14]
Main cast and characters
[edit]This section includes characters who will appear or have appeared in more than two films in the series.
- An empty, dark grey cell indicates the character was not in the film, or that the character's official presence has not yet been confirmed.
- O indicates an older version of the character.
- V indicates a voice-only role.
| Character | Film | Television | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Sandlot | The Sandlot 2 | The Sandlot: Heading Home |
Untitled prequel |
Untitled sequel series | |
| Principal cast | |||||
| Scott "Scotty" Smalls | Tom Guiry David Mickey EvansOV Arliss HowardO |
Tom Guiry | |||
| Benjamin "Benny the Jet" Rodriguez | Mike Vitar Pablo VitarO |
Danny Nucci | Mike Vitar | ||
| Hamilton "Ham" Porter | Patrick Renna | Patrick Renna | |||
| Michael "Squints" Palledorous | Chauncey Leopardi | Chauncey Leopardi | Chauncey Leopardi | ||
| Alan "Yeah-Yeah" McClennan | Marty York | Marty York | |||
| Kenny DeNunez | Brandon Quintin Adams | Brandon Quintin Adams | |||
| Bertram Grover Weeks | Grant Gelt | Grant Gelt | |||
| Timothy "Timmy" Timmons | Victor di Mattia | Victor di Mattia | |||
| Tommy "Repeat" Timmons | Shane Obedzinski | Shane Obedzinski | |||
| Mr. Mertle | James Earl Jones | ||||
| John "Johnnie" Smalls | James Willson David Mickey EvansOV |
||||
| David "Rocket" Durango | Max Lloyd-Jones | ||||
| Hayley Goodfairer | Samantha Burton | ||||
| Mac McKing | Brett Kelly | ||||
| Saul Samuelson | Cole Evan Weiss | ||||
| Tarquell | Neilen Benvegnu | ||||
| Sammy "Fingers" Samuelson | Sean Berdy | ||||
| Singleton | Reece Thompson | ||||
| Tommy "Santa" Santorelli | Keanu Pires Luke PerryO |
||||
| Quincy "Q" Washington | Meschach Peters Chris ShieldsO |
||||
| Ryan | Cainan Wiebe Dean HinchleyO |
||||
| Two-Ton | Brandon Olds | ||||
| Timber | Kai James | ||||
| Wings McKay | Ryan Drescher | ||||
| D.P. | Cole Heppell | ||||
| Rolando "Roll" Alvarez | Renzo Carbonel | ||||
| Matt "Wok" Wakamoto | Samuel Patrick | ||||
| Supporting cast | |||||
| Mrs. Smalls | Karen Allen | ||||
| Bill | Denis Leary | ||||
| Wendy Peffercorn | Marley Shelton | ||||
| George "Babe" Ruth, Jr. | Art LaFleur | ||||
| Mr. Goodfairer | Greg Germann | ||||
| Mrs. Goodfairer | Teryl Rothery | ||||
| Judy Santorelli | Lelia Johnson | ||||
| Sara Santorelli | Sarah Deakins | ||||
| Earl "E.J." Needman, Jr. | Alexander Ludwig | ||||
| Earl Needman | Paul Jarrett | ||||
Additional crew and production details
[edit]| Film | Crew/Detail | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Composer | Cinematographer | Editor | Production companies | Distributing company | Running time | ||
| The Sandlot | David Newman | Anthony B. Richmond | Michael A. Stevenson | 20th Century Fox, Island World |
Twentieth Century Fox | 1hr 41mins | |
| The Sandlot 2 | Laura Karpman | David Pelletier | Harry Keramidas | 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment LLC, David Evans Pictures |
20th Century Fox Home Entertainment | 1hr 37mins | |
| The Sandlot: Heading Home | Kendall Marsh | Pascal Provost | Chris Conlee | 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment | 1hr 36mins | ||
| Untitled prequel film | TBA | TBA | TBA | 20th Century Fox, 20th Century Studios, Walt Disney Studios |
Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures | TBA | |
| Untitled TV series sequel | TBA | TBA | TBA | 20th Century Fox Television, 20th Century Television, Walt Disney Television |
Disney+ | TBA | |
Reception
[edit]Box office and financial performance
[edit]| Film | Box office gross | Box office ranking | Video sales gross |
Worldwide sales total |
Budget | Worldwide net income |
Ref. | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| North America | Other territories | Worldwide | All time North America |
All time worldwide |
North America | |||||
| The Sandlot | $32,434,0006 | $1,398,307 | $33,832,313 | #2,638 | #3,744 | $34,237,307 | $68,069,620 | $7,000,000 | $61,069,620 | [15][16][17] |
| The Sandlot 2 | — | — | — | — | — | Information not available | [18] | |||
| The Sandlot: Heading Home | — | — | — | — | — | $2,414,304 | $2,414,304 | Information not available | <$2,414,304 | [19] |
| Untitled prequel | [to be determined] | [to be determined] | [to be determined] | [to be determined] | [to be determined] | [to be determined] | [to be determined] | TBA | [to be determined] | |
| Totals | $32,434,006 | $1,398,307 | $33,832,313 | x̅ #660 | x̅ #936 | $36,651,611 | $70,483,924 | >$7,000,000 | ≤$63,483,924 | |
Critical and public response
[edit]| Film | Rotten Tomatoes | Metacritic | CinemaScore |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Sandlot | 63% (56 reviews) [20] | 55/100 (27 reviews) [21] | B+[22] |
| The Sandlot 2 | 40% (5 reviews)[23] | — | — |
| The Sandlot: Heading Home | — (3 reviews)[24] | — | — |
Notes
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ Goldberg, Matt (July 31, 2018). "'The Sandlot' Prequel in Development with Original Writer-Director David Mickey Evans". Collider. Retrieved March 9, 2021.
- ^ Whitten, Sarah (November 10, 2019). "These 4 franchises are getting new life on Disney+". CNBC. Retrieved March 9, 2021.
- ^ Welk, Brian (April 7, 2018). "'The Sandlot' at 25: Why the '90s Cult Classic Will Live 'For-Ev-Ver'". The Wrap. Retrieved March 9, 2021.
- ^ Bitette, Nicole (April 6, 2018). "'The Sandlot' was almost a very different movie". New York Daily News. Retrieved March 9, 2021.
- ^ Ascencio, Bianca (January 29, 2021). "'The Sandlot' hits a home-run of nostalgia during troubling times". The Channels. Retrieved March 9, 2021.
- ^ Maslin, Janet (April 7, 1993). "Review/Film; A 1960's Coming-of-Age Baseball Story". The New York Times. Retrieved March 9, 2021.
- ^ Cannon, Bob (April 23, 1993). "The Sandlot: EW review". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved March 9, 2021.
- ^ Lukens, Dave (May 3, 2005). "The Sandlot 2". Dove.org. Retrieved March 9, 2021.
- ^ Barnes & Noble (May 3, 2015). "The Sandlot 2". Barnes & Noble. Retrieved March 9, 2021.
- ^ Carpenter, Edwin L. (May 1, 2007). "Sandlot, The: Heading Home". Dove.org. Retrieved March 9, 2021.
- ^ N'Duka, Amanda (July 31, 2018). "'The Sandlot' Prequel In The Works At Fox With Original Writer-Helmer David Mickey Evans Scripting". Deadline. Retrieved January 17, 2021.
- ^ Vlessing, Etan (July 31, 2018). "'The Sandlot' Prequel in the Works at 20th Century Fox". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved January 17, 2021.
- ^ D'Alessandro, Anthony (April 11, 2019). "'The Sandlot' Series In Early Development At Disney+". Deadline. Retrieved January 17, 2021.
- ^ Goldberg, Lesley (April 11, 2019). "'The Sandlot' TV Series Coming to Disney+". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved January 17, 2021.
- ^ "The Sandlot". Box Office Mojo.
- ^ "The Sandlot (1993) - Financial Information". The Numbers.
- ^ "The Sandlot (1993)". screenrant.com.
- ^ "The Sandlot 2 (2005) - Financial Information". The Numbers.
- ^ "Sandlot 3: Heading Home, The (2007) - Financial Information". The Numbers.
- ^ "The Sandlot (1993)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 2021-03-03.
- ^ "The Sandlot". Metacritic.
- ^ "Home". Cinemascore.
- ^ "The Sandlot 2 (2005)". Rotten Tomatoes.
- ^ "The Sandlot: Heading Home (2007)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 2022-01-01.