A three-way friendship between two free-spirited professional football players and the owner's daughter becomes compromised when two of them become romantically involved.
Acting
Reynolds and Kristofferson's effortless locker-room chemistry.
Direction
Ritchie nails the greasy spectacle of pro sports.
Writing
Dan Jenkins' novel adapted with genuine bite.
Director
Michael Ritchie
Burt Reynolds
Billy Clyde Puckett
Kris Kristofferson
Shake Tiller
Jill Clayburgh
Barbara Jane Bookman
Robert Preston
Big Ed Bookman
Bert Convy
Friedrich Bismarck
Roger E. Mosley
Puddin
Lotte Lenya
Carla Pelf
Richard Masur
Phillip Hooper
Carl Weathers
Dreamer Tatum
Brian Dennehy
T.J. Lambert
Mary Jo Catlett
Earlene
Joe Kapp
Hose Manning
Ron Silver
Vlada
Jim McKrell
Bud McNair
Peter Bromilow
Kostov's Interpreter
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Burt Reynolds and Kris Kristofferson became real-life friends during filming, often improvising scenes that director Michael Ritchie kept in the final cut.
The film satirizes the 1970s self-help craze through the 'Bismark' character—Ritchie's direct jab at Werner Erhard's EST seminars that were colonizing Hollywood at the time.
US
