By India McCarty
Mike Flynt, the real-life inspiration behind Angel Studios’ THE SENIOR, wasn’t sure people would be interested in hearing his story.
“When people told me that somebody was going to write a book about this or there was going to be making a movie about it, I was thinking, ‘Who cares about an old man going back to play college football?’” he told Movieguide®.
In fact, plenty of people care; in addition to THE SENIOR, Flynt’s story has also been the topic of a book, also titled The Senior. Flynt made history as the oldest linebacker in NCAA history when he rejoined his college football team at the age of 59.
An official synopsis of the movie reads, “At 59, Mike Flynt may be too old to be on a college football field, but not too old to feel the weight of unfinished business. After nearly four decades, he returns to his alma mater to take the hit that changed everything. Bruised, doubted, and nearly broken, he pushes for one more game, not for glory, but for the teammates he lost, the family he fractured, and the ending he still believes is possible.”
He faced plenty of obstacles, but Flynt said he always came back to positivity and his faith.
“I had learned over the course of my life…how important our words are,” he explained. “The words that we speak — our brain reacts differently to our own words than any other words that we hear. And then, in studying the Bible, how much it talked about the Word, and in the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God…I was constantly talking to myself, saying positive things about where I was, where I wanted to be…to be committed [and] stay committed, regardless of what happens.”
Flynt shared his faith-filled view with THE SENIOR’s director, Rod Lurie, who told the Austin American-Statesman, “He told me God had sent me to make this movie about him.”
Another reason Flynt returned to the football field? “It makes up for the guys I let down all those years ago.”
“That’s what it was about for me,” he said. “I truly wanted to be introduced into that environment, but I had to have a reason, and it was to help them. And I had to play football to do that, so I was blessed that I could.”
He then revealed what he hopes moviegoers take away from THE SENIOR.
“My hope would be that [audiences] believe in themselves,” Flynt said. “That they continue to pursue their dreams, the hopes they have. And maybe it’s not for them, [but] for someone else and to help someone else accomplish their dreams and goals….everyone has a dream.”
Catch THE SENIOR in theaters now!
Read Next: Watch this EXCLUSIVE CLIP From THE SENIOR!
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