Inside GOAT: Stephen Curry’s Animated Underdog, the ‘Goat Cast’ and a New Sport Called Roarball
Seven and a half years in the making, the animated feature GOAT lands in theaters this Friday (ET) with a star-heavy cast of basketball figures and actors, a visionary director at the helm and a game that turns every match into an action set piece. The film positions a small goat named Will as an underdog with a championship-sized dream — and a production team bent on making the on-court action feel true to the sport.
What GOAT is about
GOAT follows Will, a young Boer goat with big ambitions to play in the sport of roarball — a wildly exaggerated, animal-centric version of basketball. Will is voiced by Caleb McLaughlin and is written as the archetypal underdog: smaller than the typical roarball competitor, overlooked, but gifted with heart, handle and long-range shooting. The story tracks his rise from viral sensation to pro roster hopeful, with familiar beats of team friction, locker-room dynamics and a season that tests character as much as skill.
The goat cast: who’s in the lineup
Stephen Curry executive-produces GOAT and also voices Lenny, a journeyman giraffe whose veteran perspective anchors part of the locker-room comedy. The principal cast includes established screen actors alongside a lineup of present and past professional basketball players from both the NBA and WNBA. Gabrielle Union voices Jett Fillmore, a star player who initially resists Will but grows to appreciate what he brings to the team. The mix of actors and athletes gives the film a distinct blend of voice-work and on-court authenticity.
Roarball: reimagining basketball for animation
The sport of roarball intentionally flips conventional basketball rules and aesthetics. Courts are longer and rims higher, players can compete on two legs or four, and almost any body part — paws, hooves, tails or wings — can be used to influence play. Environments themselves are characters: courts made of red clay that trap players with living roots, ice fields that can crack mid-game, lava caves and other volatile arenas. The result is a visual and kinetic reimagining designed to amplify stakes and spectacle.
Curry’s imprint on the film’s basketball realism
Behind the scenes, the filmmakers leaned on basketball knowledge to make roarball feel purposeful rather than purely chaotic. Director Tyree Dillihay says he consulted closely with Stephen Curry on the mechanics that would read as believable — footwork, spacing, momentum and the feel of plays — and that former teammates helped map out plays that resonate with real basketball strategy. Co-director Adam Rosette worked alongside Dillihay in translating those playbook elements into sequences that read on screen as both fantastical and grounded.
Visual style, pacing and the critical conversation
GOAT’s animation is fast, textured and kinetic, deliberately ratcheting motion to create a roller-coaster effect during matches. That style will likely divide viewers: some will praise the film for channeling a modern, hyper-paced visual language into family entertainment; others may find the nonstop motion overwhelming. At its core the movie is classic underdog fare dressed in high-octane animation and bolstered by authentic basketball details — an attempt to introduce a new generation to a familiar sports narrative while giving longtime fans Easter eggs and play-level fidelity.
What to watch for on opening weekend
Opening weekend will reveal whether GOAT can balance spectacle and story. Key scenes to watch include Will’s breakthrough crossover that ignites his viral rise, the team’s locker-room chemistry as personalities clash, and the film’s signature roarball sequences where rule-bending courts and tailored plays collide. For basketball enthusiasts, the involvement of current and former players in both voice roles and play design will be a primary draw; for families, the movie pitches a buoyant underdog tale with plenty of visual thrills.
GOAT arrives in theaters this Friday (ET) with an aim to blend the emotional beats of a small-player breakthrough and the visual bravado of a new, wildly imaginative sport.
