Entertainment
3 Great Football Movies to Watch This Super Bowl Weekend: Any Given Sunday and More
There’s going to be wall-to-wall coverage of the 2026 Super Bowl on Sunday, February 8. But if you need a break from real football, then you may want to check out a football movie.
A handful of truly spectacular football movies have been made by Hollywood, most of them without the NFL’s input.
Watch With Us has narrowed the list down to three great football movies to watch this Super Bowl weekend.
Each of our picks takes a different approach to telling the story of the game and the people who love it with all of their hearts.
‘Any Given Sunday’ (1999)
Any Given Sunday probably isn’t high on the NFL’s favorite football movies because it presents a much harsher view of the game and its business than the league does. Director and co-writer Oliver Stone cast Al Pacino in the lead as Tony D’Amato, the head coach of the Miami Sharks, who can feel the new owner of the team, Christina Pagniacci (Cameron Diaz), pushing him out the door after three decades.
When Sharks quarterback Jack “Cap” Rooney (Dennis Quaid) is sidelined with an injury, third-string quarterback Willie “Steamin” Beamen (Jamie Foxx) is given a chance to revitalize his career and lead the team into the playoffs. However, Willie is such a selfish player that his antics may cost the team and Coach Rooney their last chance to make an impact together.
Any Given Sunday is available to rent or buy on Prime Video.
‘Draft Day’ (2014)
Unlike Any Given Sunday, Draft Day had the full cooperation of the NFL, and it’s the final movie directed by Ghostbusters helmer Ivan Reitman. Kevin Costner leads the cast as Sonny Weaver Jr., the Cleveland Browns’ general manager. Sonny’s personal life is messy, as he fired his father from the Browns for health reasons, and he’s secretly dating Ali Parker (Jennifer Garner), another employee of the team.
The pressure on Sonny escalates on draft day when the Browns land the No. 1 pick. For most of the NFL, college player Bo Callahan (Josh Pence) is the presumed choice to be picked first. But the more Sonny learns about Bo, the more he agonizes over the decision. If he gets this pick wrong, it may spell the end of his career in Cleveland. And the clock is ticking for Sonny to make his call.
Draft Day is streaming on Prime Video.
‘Rudy’ (1993)
Here’s some trivia about the movie Rudy: NFL legend Joe Montana was a part of the football team at Notre Dame when Daniel “Rudy” Ruettiger attended his last game in 1975. Montana isn’t a fan of the way Rudy made dramatic changes to that moment, but sports fans have embraced the legend, and the film is widely hailed as one of the greatest football movies ever made.
Sean Astin leads the cast as Rudy, a young man who seems destined to follow in his family’s footsteps in a dead-end factory job. It takes the death of his best friend to inspire Rudy to follow his dream of going to college and finding a place among Notre Dame’s football team. Who cares if the film isn’t strictly accurate about everything that brought Rudy to the point of getting on the field for the Fighting Irish? It’s an inspiring movie that never seems to get old.
Rudy is available to rent or buy on Prime Video.