Debapriya Bhattacharya
Directed by Rod Lurie, ‘The Senior’ retells the true story of Mike Flynt, a college football captain who is thrown out of school in his senior year for fighting on campus. After carrying the regret of not being able to complete his college football eligibility, he returns to his alma mater, Sul Ross State University, at the age of 59 for a second chance. Against insurmountable odds, Mike stands strong in his conviction and pushes through to prove that age is just a number and that anything is possible. Starring Michael Chiklis in the lead, the film’s visuals create an immersive experience as it captures the electric ambience at college football games in the state of Texas.
The Senior Filming Locations
The production of ‘The Senior’ took place in various locations across the state of Texas, particularly Fort Worth and Haltom City, with principal photography taking place in the fall of 2021. Additional scenes were shot in the spring of the following year, with filming wrapping up in March 2022. In the film, Mike rejoins the Sul Ross State University football team, with their home ground being Jackson Field in Alpine, Texas. However, while the names were kept the same, the real locations were not used for filming. Nevertheless, the essence of games remained, with college football being a cultural cornerstone for the Texans. The massive fields and state-of-the-art infrastructure for both the sport and the movie production made the Lone Star State the perfect setting and helped ground the narrative.
Former football player Chris Becerra, who made his acting debut as one of Mike’s teammates, Fernie Acosta, described his experience in Texas as akin to having a second home. “The Texas dynamic was truly something extraordinary,” he said in an interview with the Dallas Observer. “Everyone was so kind — it’s definitely a different vibe from me growing up and living in Southern California.” To truly capture the emotions of Texans associated with college football, the production cast real-life former footballers as background cast. “The football guys from the area were just absolute physical studs,” added Becerra. “Seeing these guys soldier through 8 to 16 hours of filming with such high intensity energy when it came to the football scenes was truly remarkable to witness.”
Fort Worth, Texas
Many sequences for ‘The Senior’ were lensed in and around the city of Fort Worth in North Central Texas. Apart from the bustling city life, the area is known for its active football scene. The sport is present at every level, from high school to college, youth, and even professional football. Fort Worth is part of the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex, which is home to the National Football League Team, the Dallas Cowboys. One of the prominently featured stadiums in the film is the Scarborough-Handley Field, located at 6201 Craig Street, where regional high school games are held.
The sheer size of the stadium had left the star, Michael Chiklis, in awe. “I’ve never seen a high school football field with 20,000 seats. I was like, ‘What college is this?’ They were like, ‘No, it’s high school,’” he told Fort Worth Star-Telegram in an interview. “I’m like, ‘What?’ I mean you take your football seriously, that’s for sure.” His fellow actor, Rob Corddry, who portrays coach Sam Weston in the film, shared his Fort Worth experience with the publication, mentioning that he stayed in an unnamed hotel downtown. “I like, destroyed about a five block radius of my hotel, the name of which I cannot remember,” quipped the actor. “I killed Fort Worth. A tiny, tiny section of Fort Worth.”
Apart from ‘The Senior,’ the city of Fort Worth formed the backdrop for movies such as ‘Glory Road,’ ‘You Gotta Believe,’ ‘Necessary Roughness,’ ’12 Mighty Orphans,’ ‘My All-American,’ ‘Tough Enough,’ ‘The Last Whistle,’ and ‘Signs of the Time.’ Similar telesion shows that were captured in the city include ‘The Amazing Race,’ ‘Champs Boxing,’ ‘Super. Human. Stories.,’ and ‘Quest for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.’
Haltom City, Texas
Situated approximately five-and-a-half miles away from Fort Worth, Haltom City served as another prominent filming location for ‘The Senior.’ The production utilized different locales in the city, especially the Birdville Stadium, which features in the movie as the venue for a number of games. Situated at 6125 East Belknap Street in the Birdville Independent School District, it is the home ground of the Haltom High School Buffaloes. Other than ‘The Senior,’ the city has been the shooting destination for projects such as ‘Paperthin,’ ‘Lone Star Justice,’ ‘Picture in Picture,’ ‘Elevator Ride,’ and ‘Eternal Darkness.’
