Whether you’re a diehard sports fan or not, there is something about the drama unfolding during a championship game that captivates a wider audience. It happened just a few months ago when the Florida Panthers secured their first Stanley Cup in franchise history as they defeated the Edmonton Oilers in the final game of a thrilling 7-game series. The upcoming anthology series Game 7 reflects on some of the most iconic final showdowns in history.
Helping tell the story of these memorable games etched in history are those who played in them. The firsthand accounts of not only those who experienced the thrill of the high-stakes environment but also what led up to the do-or-die pressure cooker they were put under. Kicking off the series are the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox from the 2003 ALCS (American League Championship Series) that exploded their rivalry. The “Curse of the Bambino” for Bean Town lived on as the Yankees’ Aaron Boone homerun sent the Yanks to the World Series.
The final installment revisits the emotionally charged 1994 Stanley Cup Finals between the New York Rangers and Vancouver Canucks. For the occasion, six-time Stanley Cup winner Mark Messier meets up with Brian Leetch as they reminisce about helping end the Rangers’ 54-year drought and path to glory. Messier is among the executive producers of the project, directed by Daniel Amigone.
Others attached are heavy hitter Connor Schell (co-creator of 30 for 30, executive producer of Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story and The Last Dance), Aaron Cohen, and Anneka Jones of Words + Pictures, as well as Messier’s teammates Mat Vlasic, and Isaac Chera of GAME 7. Adding star power is Danny DeVito, along with children and fellow EPs Jake DeVito, and Lucy DeVito, under the family production company Jersey Films 2nd Avenue.
Here Danny Devito and Messier open up about how Game 7 transcends the game itself.
Mark Messier (Prime Video)
Danny, you announced the project on your social that you were “into sports now.” How did you become attached to Game 7?
Danny DeVito: Isaac said that and he and Mark were working on this really exciting thing. I asked, “What is it?” I mean Mark Messier, come on! I wanted to meet this guy. The land of the giants. He told me what it was, and I thought it was such a brilliant idea. Game Seven is not only the two most important words in sports, but also the emotionalness of the Game 7 for me was what hooked me. I go through Game 7’s all the time where I’m at a point where I’m just about to step into the abyss and have to get the courage up and know I have to do it. I know if I don’t do it right, I’m going to be sitting on my butt wondering why. That’s what they go through all the time. That is what got me excited about this and of course Mark.
Mark, Danny brings up a good point about how the anthology series really goes beyond sports. There are so many other elements behind a championship game from the players, to what it does to a city, and what athletes like yourself face mentally in wanting to win. Talk a bit about these elements of the story that are brought out.
Mark Messier: I think it’s incredible to see when there is a Game 7 on, how many people that don’t follow sports are inclined to go watch. It’s the greatest form of reality TV in the world. Game 7 moments, there is a winner, a loser, triumph and failure. There are journeys along the way. There is everything you can encompass to grab the emotions and attention of the people watching. You don’t have to be a sports guy to absorb that emotionally. I think the biggest part in life for me is everyone can have a Game 7 moment.
Like Danny says before he gets ready to go on stage, it’s a Game 7 performance he has to deliver. He has to perform when the pressure is at its highest. Everybody is facing something like this in their life at one time or another. It’s going to alter their trajectory one way or another. They have to be ready for that to make the correct decisions. Sometimes you are, and sometimes you’re not. If you’re not, what did you learn from the experience so the next time it comes around you’re more prepared? That’s the inspirational, aspirational, brand we’re trying to teach our young boys and girls there are tools required to make the right decision when your Game 7 moment arrives.
Danny: Exactly. You work hard to get to where you are and then it comes down to this Game 7. Sometimes you may knock the ball out of the park or get that puck in the net, but there are times you miss. It’s a challenge. You know that is why you’re in the game. You get up the next morning and work hard to try to get to that next Game 7 because you know the next one is coming.
Danny, what does it mean for you to support these types of projects and collaborate with your family behind the camera?
Danny: I run everything by my kids. My kids lit up when I told them the idea. They all loved it because a Game 7 can take you from zero to 80. You’re on the edge of your seat if it’s your favorite team, even better. The idea of getting it out there. I figured it would be a great TV show. That’s where these guys made me happy because they were thinking the same thing. Amazon could have ordered seven shows, but we’re doing five. It’s Game 7. Let’s do seven of them. We’re doing five.
Why was that?
Danny: We’re going to go next year, I’m sure of it. Next year I’m going to get them to go seven. We have to make up for the other two. They will owe us two [laughs].
Mark Messier meets up with Brian Leetch (Prime Video)
Mark, how was it looking back at such a pivotal moment in your career and sharing it with Brian?
Mark: It was incredibly powerful and emotional for both of us to relive it. In fact, I just had the 1994 Stanley Cup Champions New York Rangers in town a couple of weeks ago to celebrate our 30th anniversary. We rented out a movie theater, and we had 16 of the 21 or 22 players come into town. We sat there and watched the game. It was unbelievably emotional for all of us to watch it together and think about doing something that no other team has done more than once in 80 years.
It was a powerful moment here in New York and for that franchise and people who followed the New York Rangers. To be part of something like that was so powerful. To be able to tell this story 30 years later about how it happened. The way the team galvanized together. The journey toward the Cup. It was incredible to not only make and be a part of the docuseries but also to relive it. Of course, as people will see Brian and I went down memory lane back to the Garden 30 years later. It was incredible.
Any particular other episodes you’re excited for viewers to check out?
Mark: It’s more than the game itself. It’s the human interest stories around it. The lessons these players learned and the unwavering belief they had in themselves when things didn’t go well during a game that they were able to overcome. The Cubs-Indians [from the 2016 World Series] is incredible. There is not a dry eye watching it. It’s amazing. The look at the 1987 [Edmonton] Oilers [vs. the Philidelphia Flyers], the storyline with that and Steve Smith and the journey of losing in ‘86 and coming back in ‘87. Dirk Nowitzki and what he did in Dallas [for the Mavericks in 2006 against the San Antonio Spurs]. Aaron Boone, too. Everyone is so compelling. You don’t have to be a fan of that particular sport or team to get yourself pulled into the storyline.
Danny: What happened to me when we were making this, my observation of the fans has been off the charts. I know every time you go to a game and watch a game, they cut to people who are on the edge of their seats. They are painted from head to toe or wearing all sorts of crazy costumes. Really, when you dig deep, there are so many emotional buttons that are being pressed. There are people who are really dedicated, and I love them for that. Even in the movie business, the fans are what makes it. You guys work hard in sports. We work hard in the movies and on stage.
Boy, without the fans we’re nothing. They are so invested. We have a couple of men in the series Tom Morello, the guitarist from Rage Against the Machine. He is so passionate about the Cubs. I was about to get Billy Crystal. We were about to do Billy, then the actor’s strike happened. There are people, especially in my business of the movie business that I know. They are fanatics. Crazy. Wonderful joyous fans. I have been watching vicariously through the players. I didn’t go to all of these games, but I’ve seen a lot since we’ve been doing the show.
Danny, you’re about to turn 80 and are as busy as ever. You’re on Jersey Mike’s Subs commercials, It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia is still going strong. What’s your mindset about your career today?
Danny: I’m starting work Monday with Sunny. We’re doing eight shows. We usually do eight. I’m very excited. I can’t wait to go to work. I just did Broadway last year with Lucy. That was a joy. This project is spectacular because it’s a whole other avenue. I’m wearing my Game 7 hat and he’s wearing his. I like the stylish hat. I feel like in terms of myself, I just keep going. I keep going. I keep doing projects. We’re producing a couple of little movies. We’re trying to work with Arnold [Schwarzenegger] again next year in a film. Sunny runs through the holiday and come what may. I want to go back on the boards. I want to go back on stage too. It has been a lot of fun doing stuff. This is so mch fun looking at the sports stuff because I am a sports enthusiast, but I’m really one of those guys who wait for the playoffs to get started. I want that Game 7 rush.
Game 7 premiere, October 22, Amazon Prime Video