Denzel Washington’s 2000 Sports Drama Launched 3 A-List Actors’ Movie Careers

Few movies have launched the careers of more than one A-list actor, and one sports drama starring Denzel Washington marked the beginning of the movie careers of three well-known actors. Denzel Washington has a variety of movies in his extensive filmography, and one of his most memorable and beloved works is Remember the Titans. Released in 2000 and directed by Boaz Yakin, Remember the Titans is loosely based on the true story of Herman Boone, coach of the 1971 T.C. Williams High School football team.

Remember the Titans follows Boone (Washington), who, in 1971, is hired as head coach of T.C. Williams High School, while former head coach Bill Yoast (Will Patton) accepts his offer to serve as his defensive coordinator. Although the players initially struggle to play as a racially integrated team for the first time, they eventually learn to be a true team and form strong friendships. Although Remember the Titans wasn’t the critics’ favorite upon release, it was a box office success and is now regarded as one of the best football movies, and it launched the movie careers of three big stars.

Remember The Titans Helped Ryan Gosling Transition Into Movies

Ryan Gosling Was Already A TV Star

Remember the Titans brought together Yoast’s team of white players and Boone’s team of Black players, and among the former was Alan Bosley, played by Ryan Gosling. Although Bosley isn’t a big character in Remember the Titans, and he doesn’t have much screen time, Gosling’s strong presence and his locker room scenes dancing with his teammates made his performance quite memorable. Gosling is now one of the most respected, popular, and profitable actors in Hollywood, and Remember the Titans marked the beginning of his successful film career.

By the time he was cast in Remember the Titans, Gosling already had an acting career on TV. Gosling’s career began on The All-New Mickey Mouse Club in the early 1990s, followed by one-episode appearances in Are You Afraid of the Dark?, Goosebumps, Ready or Not, and more. In 1997, Gosling starred in the TV series Breaker High, but his big break arrived the following year when he starred in Young Hercules. Gosling then made the jump to film with Remember the Titans and the following year, he got the lead role in the drama The Believer.

Once Gosling made the transition from TV to film, he didn’t return to the former except for the three times he hosted Saturday Night Live and when he voiced Blue Penguin in the TV film My Favorite Shapes by Julio Torres. Since Remember the Titans, Gosling has shown his range in romance films like The Notebook, thrillers like Fracture, comedies like Crazy, Stupid, Love and Barbie, musicals like La La Land, and action like The Fall Guy.

Hayden Panettiere Appeared In Remember The Titans Before Her Heroes Breakout

Hayden Panettiere’s Performance Stood Out In Remember The Titans

Although the focus of Remember the Titans was the team and Boone and Yoast’s joint efforts to take them to glory, another character stole the spotlight multiple times: Sheryl Yoast, Bill’s daughter, played by Hayden Panettiere. Despite being very young, Sheryl was very passionate about football and would often accompany her father to the practices, offering insight into what the team needed and what they could improve. Sheryl is the narrator in Remember the Titans, making her an important presence throughout the entire movie.

Like Ryan Gosling, Hayden Panettiere wasn’t a newcomer when she was cast in Remember the Titans, but it wasn’t her big break, either. Panettiere played the main role in the soap opera One Life to Live from 1994 to 1996 and the main role in Guiding Light from 1996 to 2000. Panettiere made her film debut in 1998’s The Object of My Affection, but Sheryl Yoast was her biggest film role at the time. Panettiere’s big break arrived in 2006 when she starred in the TV series Heroes, after which she has continued to have a pretty successful career in both film and TV.

Remember The Titans Was A Big Early Role For Kate Bosworth

Kate Bosworth Went On To Become A Big Star In The 2000s

Also part of the Remember the Titans cast was Kate Bosworth, who played Emma Hoyt, the girlfriend of player Gerry Bertier (Ryan Hurst). Although Bosworth has a minor role in Remember the Titans, appearing just a couple of times and very briefly, it was one of her earliest and biggest projects. Bosworth also had her start on TV in the family drama 7th Heaven, and in 1998, she got her first film role in Robert Redford’s The Horse Whisperer. Two years after Remember the Titans, Bosworth had her break in the sports film Blue Crush.

Bosworth has since been part of a variety of movies, most notably Superman Returns, 21, Still Alice, House of Darkness, and the drama miniseries The Long Road Home. Remember the Titans earned a place among the best football movies of all time, but it’s also notable for launching the careers of these three movie stars.