Bad News Bears

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Bad News Bears

PG-13

2005

1h 48m

Comedy

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

48%

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164 Reviews

46%

Popcornmeter

50,000+ Ratings

Morris Buttermaker is a burned-out minor league baseball player who loves to drink and can't keep his hands to himself. His long-suffering lawyer arranges for him to manage a local Little League team, and Buttermaker soon finds himself the head of a rag-tag group of misfit players. Through unconventional team-building exercises and his offbeat coaching style, Buttermaker helps his hapless Bears prepare to meet their rivals, the Yankees.

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Critics Consensus

This too-faithful remake aims low for laughs, turning off the easily offendable; despite another lovably irascible contribution by Thornton, it lacks the ensemble strength and originality of the 1976 version.

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David Edelstein

Slate

05/13/2014

The best reason to see Richard Linklater's wholly unnecessary but highly enjoyable remake of The Bad News Bears is Billy Bob Thornton, who's doing a PG-13 version of his Bad Santa.

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Jonathan Rosenbaum

Chicago Reader

05/13/2014

Fortunately almost everyone acquits himself coolly and admirably.

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Christy Lemire

Associated Press

05/13/2014

Billy Bob Thornton has proven he can do pretty much anything, but he simply does not look haggard, washed-up or miserable enough to be a believable Morris Buttermaker, the role Walter Matthau immortalized.

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Nick Rogers

Midwest Film Journal

Jul 28

3/5

The least distinctive film Richard Linklater has ever made, as he's constrained & confined by sports-movie mandates. But the inklings of intriguing, dark ideas creep out at times during the film alongside fun, big-boss insults from Billy Bob Thornton.

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Paul Emmanuel Enicola

The Movie Buff

07/04/2024

C

“Bad News Bears,” for all its intents, is just another example of an all-too-faithful remake of a classic. Unfortunately, with the filmmaker’s effort to capture the heart of the original, the film sputters to find its own soul.

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Richard Crouse

Richard Crouse

01/31/2021

2.5/5

Delights in confronting - and stomping on - the kind of political correctness that simply didn't exist in 1976 when the first one was made

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Robert H.

@Rwhobbs198 May 5

Bad News Bears (2005) is a crude, unapologetic comedy that works surprisingly well if you meet it on its own terms. Going in without any attachment to the original makes it easier to enjoy, and for me, that fresh perspective paid off. The humor is rough around the edges and often wildly inappropriate, but it lands more often than not. Billy Bob Thornton plays the washed-up, hard-drinking coach perfectly, leading a group of misfit kids who start off as a complete mess and gradually come together as a gritty, competitive team. It follows a familiar underdog sports formula, but its twisted tone gives it a different feel than your typical feel-good movie. There’s a strange heart underneath all the chaos that makes it more than just shock-value comedy. Despite the lower critical reception, I found it genuinely funny and entertaining. Not for everyone, but if the humor clicks, it’s an easy, laugh-filled watch.

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Stephen C

@bob25009 Mar 29

The worldwide gross is $34,252,847.00, less than the budget of $35,000,000,00. Rated PG-13 for Rude Behavior, Language Throughout, Some Sexuality and Thematic Elements.

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Steven F.

@SteveGotScored Mar 1

A hilarious remake by far!

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Cork B

@RT87142816 Feb 9

It's not bad, but the original seemed better (from my fuzzy recollection). Thorton is a good choice here, and the script and writing, as much as it copied the original, was still solid. I don't know if it was the direction or what, but the whole film seemed to pull its punches. What should have been a solid belly laugh on paper felt muted, and emotional high points seemed too short and less telescoped. Some of the child actors (Tanner) I though did a bang up job, but others not so much.

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Abraham S

@ItsAbe Jun 15

10/10 cuz funnee 😂😂😂😂😂😂

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Dani G

@RT81139271 06/09/2025

Same "loser group of kids with a despicable coach" we have seen so many times

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Richard Linklater

Director

Billy Bob Thornton

Morris Buttermaker

Greg Kinnear

Roy Bullock

Marcia Gay Harden

Liz Whitewood

Sammi Kane Kraft

Amanda Whurlitzer

Ridge Canipe

Toby Whitewood

Bad News Bears: Official Clip - Second Place

1:37

Bad News Bears: Official Clip - Brawl at the Plate

1:55

Bad News Bears: Official Clip - Genital Defense Apparatus

1:02

Bad News Bears: Official Clip - Do You Feel That?

2:06

Bad News Bears: Official Clip - Bottom of the 6th

1:53

Bad News Bears: Official Clip - Opening Day

2:03

Bad News Bears: Official Clip - Batting Practice

1:34

Bad News Bears: Official Clip - Don't Lean Against That Door

1:53

Bad News Bears: Official Clip - First Practice

2:08

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Synopsis

Morris Buttermaker is a burned-out minor league baseball player who loves to drink and can't keep his hands to himself. His long-suffering lawyer arranges for him to manage a local Little League team, and Buttermaker soon finds himself the head of a rag-tag group of misfit players. Through unconventional team-building exercises and his offbeat coaching style, Buttermaker helps his hapless Bears prepare to meet their rivals, the Yankees.

Director: Richard Linklater
Producer: J. Geyer Kosinski
Screenwriter: Glenn Ficarra, John Requa
Distributor: Paramount Pictures
Production Co: Media Talent Group, Paramount Pictures International
Rating: PG-13 (Rude Behavior|Language Throughout|Some Sexuality|Thematic Elements)
Genre: Comedy
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Jul 22, 2005, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Aug 1, 2013
Box Office (Gross USA): $32.9M
Runtime: 1h 48m
Sound Mix: Dolby SRD, DTS
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.37:1)