“Eddie the Eagle” soars into theaters this weekend and while Dexter Fletcher’s crowd-pleasing sports film is absolutely terrific, one element stands out for the wrong reasons — Hugh Jackman‘s cigarette smoking.
In the film, Jackman’s Bronson Peary is depicted as a former golden boy skier turned burnout who drinks and smokes with reckless abandon — and coaches Taron Egerton’s Michael Edwards to become the British athlete to compete in Olympic ski jump when he finished last in every event he entered at the 1988 Winter Games.
Cigarette smoking is one of the reasons that 20th Century Fox’s otherwise family-friendly film earned a PG-13 rating.
The prominence of cigarettes make the movie an anomaly for recent Hollywood releases. It was approximately a decade ago that one Hollywood studio after another established anti-smoking policies regarding youth-rated movies, meaning all G, PG and PG-13 rated films.
As reported by the New York Times in 2007, 20th Century Fox had already instituted “a strict though intentionally unpublicized policy of rooting tobacco out of youth-friendly films” since as far back as 2004. “The studio’s production manual has mandated that no principal character can be seen to smoke in a film set in contemporary times and to be rated G, PG or PG-13 unless the studio’s president of production signs off on the scene,” the Times reported.
“Eddie the Eagle,” however, finds a loophole or two around that self-imposed restriction. Not only is it set in the 1980s and thus, not a contemporary story, but it’s not even a homegrown Fox production.
The project was initially developed by Matthew Vaughn‘s production company Marv Films, which is based in England. Fox signed on to distribute “Eddie the Eagle” early in the process, but the film was not subject to its production manual since it was made outside of the studio system.
“The movie is period, and back then, smoking wasn’t nearly as taboo as it is now,” an individual close to the project told TheWrap. “Hugh’s character is an athlete gone to seed, and one way to depict that was to show him smoking and drinking. I don’t think we were glorifying smoking, because by the end of the movie, he realizes he should invest in his life and his future, and he stops smoking. We wanted to show the character’s journey and that some of the vices he has taken up along the way are not good for him, so he’s going to give them up.”
What’s curious is that the chain-smoking Bronson is a fictional character whom the real Edwards has described as “an amalgamation of all my coaches.” This includes John Viscome and Chuck Berghorn, the latter of whom was most closely associated with Edwards’ bid for Olympic glory.
At one point in the film, Bronson does a ski jump of his own, with Jackman making it look effortless as he flicks a cigarette at the camera in slow-motion while racing downhill. Later, when Bronson warns Eddie of the sport’s many dangers, the younger man retorts, “You do realize that smoking cigarettes is a lot more dangerous than jumping the 90 meters,” thereby addressing the issue.
“This film has a great message, but it wasn’t conceived as a Disney movie. The smoking was a character decision, and the filmmakers made a point of having Eddie say that line,” the individual said, highlighting the juxtaposition between Bronson’s love of booze and Eddie’s own love of milk.
A studio insider echoed that point, explaining that “smoking was used in the film to symbolize how far [Jackman’s] character has fallen. It’s used to show the character’s arc and how he cleans himself up at the end (where he is even drinking milk). Smoking is NOT glorified, but rather in a sense demonized.”
Fletcher, Vaughn and their collaborators are certainly entitled to creative license, and cigarette smoking is not out of line in a PG-13 movie — it’s just uncommon these days as Hollywood makes a concerted effort to reduce smoking on the big screen.
“Eddie the Eagle” remains a wonderful, inspirational sports story that aims to give hope to children around the world, but the fact remains that Eddie’s story could have been told without all those stinky cigarettes.
18 Dramatic Championship Sports Movie Moments: From 'Rocky' to 'Remember the Titans' (Photos)
"The Pride of the Yankees" (1942)
This beautifully dramatized moment of sports history, as wonderfully monologued by Gary Cooper, helped to immortalize the already infamous "Luckiest man" speech by Lou Gehrig.
“Rocky” (1976)
In the ultimate underdog story, newcomer Rocky Balboa (Sylvester Stallone) gets a shot at the world heavyweight title against champ Apollo Creed. Rocky proves he has the goods, going the entire 15 rounds against Creed, but loses in a split decision. Rocky would get a rematch though and win the title in “Rocky II”.
"Breaking Away" (1979)
One of the most inspiring underdog stories ever made, the Little 500 bicycle race in Bloomington, Indiana, is a local classic as made famous by this film. In the film's closing race scene, the locals -- dressed in plain white T-shirts with their nickname the "Cutters" -- upset the richer college students with more expensive bikes and uniforms, riding across the finish line in pure glory.
“Chariots of Fire” (1981)
Two Englishmen push each other to be the best sprinter at the 1924 Olympics. While they won gold on the big screen’s racetrack, “Chariots of Fire” would go on to win Oscar gold for best picture.
“The Natural” (1984)
Robert Redford plays middle-age rookie Roy Hobbs in “The Natural.” Hobbs leads his team to a championship on his final at-bat when he launches the most famous home run in movie history. Thus proving the unspoken rule in baseball: If you break the lights you win the game.
“Hoosiers” (1986)
Another Indiana classic in what is widely considered one of the greatest sports movies of all time, “Hoosiers” follows a small town high school basketball team as they make it all the way to the state finals. They play a bigger and more athletic team in the finals, but with a last second shot pull off the surprise victory.
“Major League” (1989)
Charlie Sheen and Tom Berenger lead an outfit of misfit Cleveland Indians from last place to a shot at the league pennant against the powerhouse Yankees. Even though the film is a comedy, the final game plays out in dramatic fashion.
“A League of Their Own” (1992)
“A League of Their Own” proved that girls can play baseball, and ends in a play at the plate that determines the championship. Geena Davis’ Rockford Peaches may lose that final game, but as Tom Hanks taught us, “there is no crying in baseball!”
Steve James’ revolutionary documentary follows inner-city Chicago kids William Gates and Arthur Agee throughout their high-school basketball careers. The film culminates in both striving to reach the finals of their city wide championship tournament.
“Remember the Titans” (2001)
Based on the true story of Virginia’s first integrated high school football team (led by coach Denzel Washington), the Titans not only change the views of an entire town, but they go undefeated on their way to a thrilling state championship against an all-white team.
“Friday Night Lights” (2004)
The film that spawned the critically acclaimed TV series (which in turn may spawn a film of its own) is memorable in that its featured team doesn’t win the championship. The Permian Panthers mount a great comeback, but come up one yard short of the state title.
“Miracle” (2004)
In perhaps one of the greatest upsets in sports history, a team of U.S. college hockey players defeated the Soviet Union, the three-time defending gold medal winner and best team in the world, during the Cold War.
"DodgeBall" (2004)
Okay, okay. This is really a parody of sports movies. But for all its send-ups of underdog sports movie formulas, it also embraces them full-heartedly during the gripping championship showdown between the Average Joes and Globo Gym.
“The Fighter” (2010) David O. Russell‘s Oscar-winning picture depicted boxer Mickey Ward’s (Mark Wahlberg) climb up the ranks from middling contender to a shot at the title. The final fight shows the grit and heart that it took for Ward to win the belt.
"Senna" (2010)
The best sports documentaries are as riveting as their scripted counterparts, putting viewers right in the action as if they are watching it unfold live. "Senna" is one of the finest examples, using primarily archival footage with no narration and few interviews to show the bitter Formula 1 rivalry between Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost that led to the 1989 and 1990 championships being decided in controversial fashion at Japan's famed Suzuka Circuit.
"Survive and Advance" (2013)
ESPN's "30 for 30" series included a look at arguably the most famous championship run in college basketball history. In 1983, Jimmy Valvano led the North Carolina State Wolfpack on a streak of nine consecutive overtime or one-point wins, culminating in a last-second basket to win the championship over top-ranked Houston. In this documentary, even though the outcome is known, every game's heart-stopping drama is recreated perfectly.
"Creed" (2015)
The power and hypnotic beauty of this famous running scene from "Creed" as directed by Ryan Coogler is immense. Michael B. Jordan captures the inspiring training run from the original "Rocky" with a modern spirit. You can feel the emotion of the moment so strongly and can't help but root for him.
"Celtics/Lakers: Best of Enemies" (2017)
Another ESPN documentary that puts you right in the moment. Narrated by Lakers fan Ice Cube and Celtics fan Donnie Wahlberg, this five-hour doc covers the most famous championship rivalry in sports, which peaked with Magic Johnson and Larry Bird in the 80s. The tension hits its peak with Game 4 of the 1987 NBA Finals, in which Bird infamously missed a game-tying three-point shot.
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Whether it’s the thrill of victory or the agony of defeat, TheWrap recaps the biggest moments in these sports classics
