Owen Wilson’s ‘Ted Lasso’ inspired comedy bombs amid comparisons?

Ted Lasso was a huge success for Apple TV+ right as it premiered back in 2020 and the streaming network may have aimed for similar success with their latest sports comedy Stick, starring Owen Wilson.

However, the critics have since derided the attempt as a miscalculated step as the show reportedly failed to reignite the magic created by the charm of its predecessor ahead of its release.

While the show will debut its first episode tomorrow, the professionals who have already had the chance of catching early screenings are not exactly full of praise.

On IMDb, the series is described as, “An over-the-hill ex-golfer, fired from his job, sees hope in coaching a troubled teen prodigy after his wife leaves him, staking his future on the youth's success.”

Meanwhile, Stick debuted with a measly 50% on Rotten Tomatoes, while the top most critical reviews for it have not been any better.

From The Daily Beast, Nick Shager wrote, “Stretching clichés so thin that its comedy by and large vanishes, thereby neutering charming turns from Owen Wilson and Marc Maron, this slog is like a more heartfelt ‘Happy Gilmore’ if it ran as long as Ingmar Bergman’s ‘Fanny and Alexander’.”

Similar comments are echoed by TheWrap’s Chase Hutchison, who shared, “There could be an enjoyable 90-minute comedy hidden away in here, but a full TV season painfully overstretches a standard sports underdog story until you just wish it would call it a day and go home.”

On the other hand, Screen Rant’s Greg MacArthur provided a bit of hope for the show’s future, as he wrote in an article for the website, “Just like its underdog story, ‘Stick’ season 1 still has a chance to bounce back.”

Stick season one comprises seven episodes, the first of which will premiere Wednesday, June 4, with a cast that includes Owen Wilson, Marc Maron, Judy Greer, and Peter Dager, and others.