Owen Wilson’s new Apple TV+ comedy seriesStickgives him a chance to return to recapture the magic of one of his most famous movies and redo one of his most underrated ones. Over the years,Owen Wilson’s best movieshave earned him a reputation as a comedy icon. While he has had a few dramatic roles, such as Agent Mobius inLoki, he’s been a comedy star for nearly 30 years now. From classics likeZoolanderandWedding Crashersto Wes Anderson films likeThe Darjeeling LimitedandBottle Rocket, Wilson has been a juggernaut of the entire genre.
Now, Owen Wilson’s new golf comedy seriesStickis giving him a chance to update some notable parts of his filmography. Wilson leads thecast ofStickas Pryce Cahill, a former pro-golfer turned mentor to an up-and-coming prodigy. ThoughStick’s initial Rotten Tomatoes score was underwhelming, the series has already been compared toTed Lassoboth for its humor and for its wholesome, heartwarming story. By theending ofStickepisode 3, the show is already off to a great start, and it could have a chance to redefine some parts of Wilson’s career.
Stick Is Owen Wilson’s First Sports Comedy Since The Cars Franchise
Lightning McQueen Is Still One Of Wilson’s Most Famous Characters, But Stick Gives Him A Chance To Do A Sports Comedy In Live-Action
Since it centers around golf,Stickis Owen Wilson’s first sports comedy since he voiced race car Lightning McQueen in theCarsfranchise.Carsis easily one of Owen Wilson’s most iconic franchises, especially for younger viewers, andStickis putting him back in a genre he’s already proven to be great in. While there’s a very small chance thatStickwill surpassCars, it’s still nice to see Wilson return to the genre in live-action. They even have other similarities, such as the fact that Pryce is a former pro teaching a young prodigy inStick, just as Lightning McQueen taught Cruz to race inCars 3.
Stickcould even surpassCarsin one key area. Though it is about race cars and the sport of racing,Carswasn’t really about sports until the third movie. The originalCarswas more about Radiator Springs than McQueen’s racing career, whileCars 2was a spy thriller.Stickcould give Wilson a better chance to lean into the sports half a sports comedy in a wayCarsonly recently began to. There’s already been a lot of talk about the fundamentals of golf and some poetic lines about what the sport itself means, which putsStickahead ofCarsin that one category.
Much ofSticksees Pryce, Santi, and the rest of the crew traveling between golf courses in Mittsy’s (Marc Maron) RV.That premise alone madeStickinto a classic road trip comedy, which makes it the first time Owen Wilson has done that trope since 2017’sFather Figures. UnlikeCars, however,Father Figureswas severely underrated. It has just 17% onRotten Tomatoes, even thoughFather Figureswas a lot better than it seemed. Still, it’s one of Wilson’s lowest-rated movies ever, with just six other movies scoring lower on the review aggregator.
Déjà Vu All Over Again
July 23
SinceFather Figureswas both poorly received and Owen Wilson’s only attempt at a road trip comedy,Stickcould easily surpass it.Stickis a very good chance for Wilson to revisit the road trip trope and do it better this time, and it could be a much better example of the subgenre thanFather Figureswas.Stickalso has a few advantages that could help Wilson shine more than he did inFather Figures. Wilson is leadingStickas its main star, and he has an hours-longer runtime to humor audiences and show off his comedic talents.
