American Underdog is a 2021 American biographical sports film about NFL quarterback Kurt Warner. Directed by Andrew and Jon Erwin, the film follows Warner’s journey as an undrafted player who ascended to winning Super Bowl XXXIV. It stars Zachary Levi as Warner alongside Anna Paquin as his wife Brenda and Dennis Quaid as St. Louis Rams head coach, Dick Vermeil. This chronicles the true story of Kurt Warner, who went from stocking shelves at a supermarket to becoming a two-time NFL MVP, Super Bowl MVP and Hall of Fame Quarterback. 

   The Film starts out with young Kurt Warner watching Super Bowl XIX as a kid. He makes a lifelong commitment to become a Super Bowl and MVP quarterback. Several years later, Kurt is playing in his 5th year at the University of Northern Iowa with Coach Terry Allen. He threatens to bench him after not following team rules, which would effectively end his NFL dream. After brutal practice, Warner continues to be the starter and his numbers climb to a point where he has a chance at the draft. Warner unfortunately didn’t get the role the first time, but the Green Bay Packers wanted to give him a shot once the draft was over. Of course, the one and only Bret Farve was announced the starting quarterback over Warner crushing his dreams of playing in the NFL and sending him back to Iowa.

   Kurt felt as if he would never make an NFL team. As if all was lost, Warner took a career in Arena Bowl football for a year. Leading his team to a Championship and falling short was just the beginning of a new era for Kurt as he was offered by the St. Louis Rams to come to try out and have a second chance.

   Trent Green was then the starter for the Rams. Their season opener was against the Baltimore Ravens in 1999, Green suffered a season ending ACL tear injury, giving Kurt the night, he will never forget. His first NFL snap. The Rams would post a 13-3 record that season and become known simply as The Greatest Show on Turf because of the high-powered offense led by Warner. The Rams would go on to defeat the Tennessee Titans in Super Bowl XXXIV. During the game, Kurt would throw the most passing yards in a Super Bowl, breaking Joe Montana’s record. Doing so helped him win Super Bowl MVP and be crowned the League MVP, making him the first undrafted player to be named either of those in NFL history.

   The film was released to the public on December 25th, 2021. It was previously scheduled to be released on Dec 18th, 2020, but was delayed from a previous Dec 10th, 2021, date, due to the delayed filming schedule during the COVID-19 Pandemic. As of Jan 11th, 2022, American Underdog has grossed $19.1 million in the United States and Canada, and $21.1 mil-lion in other territories, for a worldwide total of $40.3 million.