The story of legendary Marquette men’s basketball head coach Al McGuire will be taking its place next to other iconic sports biopics like “Rudy” and “Moneyball” with “The Confessions of Al McGuire,” which is expected to begin filming in Milwaukee this year.
The film will follow the Marquette men’s basketball team from 1974 — when they made it to the national championship game and lost to North Carolina State after McGuire received two technical fouls — to another national championship three years later, where they beat the North Carolina Tarheels in 1977.
Originally from New York, McGuire coached the Golden Warriors — Marquette did not change to the Golden Eagles until 1994 — for 13 seasons (1964-77) and was elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1992. He was known for his eccentric personality, spunky vocabulary and incessant charisma.
“[McGuire] had this New York swagger, and obnoxious, arrogant approach… and you loved him or hated him for that, but he really put Marquette on the map,” Producer and Marquette Alumnus Jamie Dyckes said.
Dyckes originally became involved with the film after seeing an advertisement on Facebook, then contacted executive producer and investor Eric Schnabel, and eventually joined the team.
“It’s a redemption story because he had to learn that his worst enemy was himself,” Executive producer and screenwriter Michael Angeli said. “He was such a great performer, but he got into it with the refs – the zebras, he called them – and that was what made them lose the 1974 championship.”
Angeli was raised in Milwaukee and is known for his work on TV shows like “Battlestar Galactica,” “Law & Order: Criminal Intent” and “Monk.”
“My dad graduated from Marquette…he just had the games on all the time, and Al McGuire – I was just entranced by him,” Angeli said. “I just waited for him to do something cool, something different, which he always did.”
Both Dyckes and Angeli mentioned McGuire’s fight for equal rights on the court and in the press room.
“He fought for race relations…when he found out that women at the time were not allowed in the press room,” Angeli said. “He said, ‘I’m not doing any more press until you allow women in the room,’ so that’s in our movie, obviously.”
Dyckes said they are still in the process of revising the script and in negotiations with an actor to play McGuire.
“The story sort of tells itself; we just need the right people to make it come alive on the screen,” Dyckes said.
The film will be directed by Anthony Hemingway, best known for his work on “Red Tails” with George Lucas and HBO’s “The Wire.” Hemingway will also work as the executive producer. The rest of the creative team consists of Kim Taylor-Coleman and Josh Green as producers.
Angeli said they are also in the process of scouting filming locations and gaining capital for the film, hoping to raise six million dollars through investors.
According to the film’s website, “The Confessions of Al McGuire” is potentially set to be released in March 2027, which would be the 50th anniversary of McGuire and Marquette’s national championship win.
Check out the film’s website and Instagram for more information on “The Confessions of Al McGuire.”
This article was written by Annie Goode. She can be reached at [email protected].
