Tom Brady is considered to be one of the greatest NFL players of all time, and now that he’s retired (for good this time), he’s about to be the focus of a scripted limited TV series. Deadline reports that Paul Tamasy & Eric Johnson, who wrote The Fighter, are developing The Patriot Way. The series, which is based on 12: The Inside Story of Tom Brady’s Fight for Redemption by Casey Sherman and Dave Wedge, will chronicle “Brady’s improbable rise from sixth-round NFL draft pick to his half-dozen Super Bowl wins with the Patriots, the Aaron Hernandez, Spygate and Deflategate scandals and Brady’s battle of wills with head coach Bill Belichick.” As Tom Brady and the New England Patriots are public figures, the writers say it will allow them “the freedom to tell the story without a filter.”
The project was first announced back in 2017, but at that time, it was being developed as a movie.
“The New England Patriots dominated the professional sports landscape for 20 years,” Paul Tamasy & Eric Johnson said in a statement. “Our series will bring the audience inside Gillette Stadium, better known as Fortress Foxboro, to shed new light on the thrilling, historic come-from-behind victories; the dark side of success; and building a culture of winning at all costs.” This will mark the third time the two writers have adapted the works of Casey Sherman and Dave Wedge. Sherman co-wrote The Finest Hours, which became the 2016 movie starring Chris Pine, and Sherman and Wedge wrote Boston Strong, which became Patriot’s Game starring Mark Wahlberg, also released in 2016.
In their own statement, Casey Sherman and Dave Wedge said, “As journalists, we had a front-row seat for all the incredible drama that has unfolded both before and after the New England Patriots won their first super bowl [in 2001]. It’s a rich, character-driven story that probably will not be duplicated in our lifetime.“