Luke Wilson and Greg Kinnear Hit The Red Carpet in Fort Worth For You Gotta Believe Film Premiere

Hollywood A-listers walked the red carpet Thursday night in downtown Fort Worth, at the premiere of You Gotta Believe ― the heartwarming story of the 2002 Westside Little League team that made a run for the Little League World Series (LLWS) that year. The movie opens nationwide today, August 30, in advance of the long Labor Day weekend, And, you can bet that a lot of Fort Worth locals will make it a point to relive this hometown story in theatres to celebrate.

Many of the teammates from that inspiring baseball season, joined the cast on the red carpet ― along with their family and friends, before a screening inside the AMC Palace 9, and an afterparty which was held at Joe T. Garcia’s Mexican restaurant in The Stockyards. It was a mix of joy at seeing their story on the silver screen, with the occasional teary eye, recalling the touching story.

The film was produced by Austin-based Santa Rita Film Co. and is being distributed by Dallas-based Well Go USA. It brings together Santa Rita’s producer Houston Hill, and director Ty Roberts, with writer Lane Garrison, and lead actor Luke Wilson ― who all were part of the red carpet premiere of 12 Mighty Orphans in August of 2021, which was also held in Fort Worth.

At its heart, the You Gotta Believe revolves around relationships.

During the run-up to the state championship and Little League World Series run by this underdog Fort Worth team, Bobby Ratliff was diagnosed with an aggressive form of cancer. His son Robert Ratliff was a player on the team, and his friend Jon Kelly was its coach. The team dedicated its efforts and its season to Bobby Ratliff, whose encouragement and “you gotta believe” attitude propelled them well beyond anyone’s expectations. Bobby died the following year, but his memory and the team’s inspiration and achievement live on ― especially in Fort Worth.

Both Robert Ratliff and his brother John, were on hand at the premiere, along with their beautiful families ― including a few of Bobby Ratliff’s grandchildren dressed in tiny Westside Little League uniforms ― complete with the name, Ratliff, stitched on the back.

“My brother, John, was a heck of a trouper through that journey. He was right next to my dad, every single game,” Robert Ratliff says.

Red Carpet Moments

Luke Wilson, who plays the lead role of Bobby Ratliff, tells PaperCity Fort Worth, “As a movie-goer you take for it granted … we love sports movies…but they’re complicated to put together. The practices, and the games, and how much of the sport do you [include in the film]? You don’t want it to overpower the emotion of the film. I wouldn’t be able to do it as a director, but Ty [Roberts] has really got a knack for it. That made me want to jump on board again.”

Of the role, and working with another young cast, on a team-focused movie, Wilson noted, “I have two older brothers, I went to an all-boys school [St. Mark’s School in Dallas], I probably live in a very male-oriented environment ― a juvenile, male-oriented environment,” he laughs.

“I just focused in,” he says. “It’s important to keep in mind that you want to honor the memory of Bobby Ratliff and do a good job in that respect.”

Greg Kinnear’s character, Coach Jon Kelly, is presented as an often distracted, and uninspiring coach, who is transformed by his friend Bobby’s diagnosis, and the spirit of his team.

“I felt like it was a lovely story,” Kinnear tells PaperCity. “I like the dynamic between the two dads. Jon Kelly kind of came to this reluctantly. I don’t think his heart was in it … and he gets caught up in the inspiration of what happens. And, it was lovely the way Ty told it.”

Patrick Renna, is still best remembered for his famous line in in another classic baseball film ― 1993’s The Sandlot ― “You’re killin’ me, Smalls.” Hordes of children reared in the latter ’90s likely heard that phrase on a loop during their early years but never got their parents’ joke. Well, now you know ― that’s where it’s from.

Renna tells us that during the shoot, he chose to eat lunch at the kid’s table, but got teary-eyed, during our interview, especially being surrounded by so many family members who had actually lived through that winning season 22 years ago.

Comparing his two baseball-themed movies, Renna says, “I suppose it’s the underdog story. That group of sandlot guys had no business being as good as they were either. People in Fort Worth still know this story.”

Canadians in Cowtown

While the story itself is based in Fort Worth, the filming actually took place in Toronto, Canada. So, the young teammates on the cast were sourced from Ontario. They had to be coached in taking on a believable Texas accent. But, that’s not all.

Lew Temple, who plays the role of assistant coach Mitch Belew, knows a bit about baseball. With his own background in the sport ― having played professionally and later as a private coach ― was tapped to teach the boys the basics of baseball on the set.

“When we showed up in Toronto for this movie, we had to get these Canadian hockey players, to hold the bats in their hands properly, and understand those four bases. I think I did more baseball coaching than acting in this movie,” Temple laughs.

Proud Canadian parents gushed, and a few even stage-mothered from behind the velvet ropes, listening to their son’s first media interviews.

Two notable cast members included Etienne Kellici who played pitcher Walker Kelly in the movie. He can also be seen in Kevin Costner’s Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 1, which was filmed just before You Gotta Believe. He says that’s where he first met castmate Luke Wilson.

Another stand-out is Michael Cash who took on the role of Robert Ratliff. Cash showed off his first pair of Lucchese boots and a new belt buckle from his trip to Fort Worth. While this is his first movie, Cash is also a trained dancer with Broadway credits that include The Music Man starring Hugh Jackman.

He says he learned a lot just watching veterans like Luke Wilson, as they improvised during scenes, playing off the energy of other actors. You’ll be seeing more of this triple threat who has now caught the acting bug.

One For The Ages

The film’s distributor, Well Go USA puts it this way, “After dedicating the season to a teammate’s ailing father, a group of underestimated youth baseball players from Fort Worth, Texas, takes its Cinderella run all the way to the 2002 Little League World Series — culminating in a record-breaking showdown that became an instant ESPN classic.”

Baseball fans love stats, and this Fort Worth team racked up quite a few in its final game against Louisville. Spoiler Alert: they didn’t make it to the finals but left a lasting impression.

The team’s pitcher Walker Kelly, who went on to play baseball at Texas Christian University, “allowed no earned runs in 15 innings. Louisville and Fort Worth got into a dramatic pitching duel,” the Baseball Reference says. “Kelly struck out 21 in 9 innings (one shy of the record) … and Michael Valdez fanned five in relief of Kelly in a 2 to 1 Louisville win in 11 innings. There were 49 strikeouts that game, shattering the LLWS record of 37 set in 1950.”

The roster of this unlikely team’s advance is now a part of the history books.

Screenwriter Lane Garrison was also in attendance and explained why this story was such a personal one for him to tell.

He says at first, he didn’t see a movie here, “But Robert started telling me the story ― about his dad, and the team and who they were and what they overcame. And, I just got chills, because my father was my Little League coach. So, this film is dedicated to Bobby Ratliff and Lee Garrison who also died the same way.”