When I first heard about Chad Powers, I wasn’t seeing the vision.
Yes, Glen Powell is as charming a lead actor as there is these days, but the idea of a disgraced former college football player disguising himself to get a college do-over so he can right the complicated wrongs of his college quarterback-having life.
Not exactly the most enticing of hooks.
But then I saw the trailer, and not only did I laugh out loud, but I got the hype.
Television and movies have done the whole going-undercover thing to death, but Chad Powers isn’t pretending to reinvent the wheel.
In fact, early on in the trailer, after we get through the exact circumstances that facilitate the whole need for Russ Holliday, otherwise known as Chad, to reinvent himself, Chad himself declares that he’s pulling a Mrs. Doubtfire.
Perhaps one of the most popular disguise movies ever, it’s clear that Chad Powers will lean into the zeitgeist, instead of acting like it’s telling us some story for the very first time.
While Mrs. Doubtfire was about a man looking to stay in his children’s lives, while in the midst of a divorce, Chad Powers is more about a man trying to show the world and himself that he’s more than what they think of him.
Redemption and second chances are echoed throughout the trailer, and again, nothing groundbreaking is happening here, but there’s little originality in general nowadays.
It’s more about taking your concept and finding a way to separate yourself from what’s come before.
With executive producers Peyton and Eli Manning, the series looks like one of the freshest takes we’ve ever seen of college football within a television series.
The football scenes are crisp, and there’s even a cameo from Eli himself. It has the vibe of something much bigger than just your ordinary television show.
It also helps that the cast is loaded with Powell at the top, Hollywood’s latest “IT” boy, who backs up the moniker with solid performances in everything that he does.
The variety of his roles has demonstrated that he can excel as both a comedic lead and a believable sports star.
The supporting cast also has some solid names attached, with Steve Zahn (a consistently reliable and capable character actor) playing Russ’s new head coach, Toby Huss playing his dad, and Perry Mattfeld, Clayne Crawford, and Quentin Plair as fellow staff members on his new team.
Frankie A. Rodriguez also stars as the standard person who knows about the ruse and helps the person in disguise figure things out and keep their secret.
The formula is basic, but there’s nothing basic about our first taste of the series.
You can tell that a lot of thought went into making things as realistic as possible, while also not taking itself too seriously.
Robin Williams transformed into a whole new person in Mrs. Doubtfire, while Russ is essentially has a prosthetic nose, cheek fillers, and a bad wig. It’s very much giving Clark Kent and Superman, but that’s what makes it fun.
It’s not taking itself super seriously, and it’s leaning into being a product of the times, with nods to social media cancellation and how quickly the public’s perception can change of people for various reasons.
In Russ’s case, it seems he was far from a great person, and his bravado turned him into a pariah. But do all pariahs deserve another taste of glory?
Or must you forever pay for the sins of your past?
Perhaps I’m giving this show a little too much credit, given that it’s an admittedly small glimpse of what’s to come, but the series looks not only entertaining but also well-crafted.
If the trailer is any indication, the series isn’t looking to change the game, but to have some fun with it.
And in the age of prestige television and dramedies masquerading as comedies, sometimes that simple formula is all you need.
I’ll be tuned into Chad Powers, will you?
Let me know in the comments if Chad Powers sounds like the kind of show you’ll be checking out this fall.
And check out the trailer below!
Chad Powers premieres on September 30th on Hulu.
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