Glen Powell, Zoey Deutch, Wyatt Russell and More Reunite in Austin for ‘Everybody Wants Some!!’ 10th Anniversary
Richard Linklater joined the cast at AFS Cinema for a sold-out 35mm screening of the 2016 college baseball comedy
A decade after Richard Linklater’s “Everybody Wants Some!!” premiered at SXSW, the filmmaker and much of the ensemble cast returned to AFS Cinema on Sunday, March 22, for a reunion screening. The 2016 film screened twice to sold-out crowds at AFS Cinema in a newly printed 35mm format, with Linklater and cast members Glen Powell, Zoey Deutch, Wyatt Russell, Tyler Hoechlin, Will Brittain, J. Quinton Johnson, Temple Baker and Forrest Vickery in attendance for post-screening Q&As.
Before the screenings, guests filled the lobby snacking on complimentary Easy Tiger pretzels and sandwiches while cast members posed for photos, signed autographs and chatted with fans. The celebratory atmosphere mirrored the loose, lived-in spirit of the film itself, a Texas-made college baseball comedy set in 1980 that was shot in Austin, Bastrop, Elgin and at Texas State University in San Marcos.
A collaborative experience
For Linklater, the reunion also marked a return to something personal. He has often said the film was inspired by his own time as a freshman at Sam Houston State University, where he briefly played baseball.
“It was so magical to see this thing recreated. For me, this is personal… So many of these guys are based on real people,” he said.
That spirit, both on screen and behind the scenes, was a recurring theme throughout the evening. Linklater praised the ensemble for the closeness they developed during the film’s lengthy rehearsal process, which helped transform a cast of actors into something resembling an actual team.
“It was was of the best team experiences I ever had… Everybody was in it for the team. There was no selfishness amongst this cast. They were all there for each other. It was really unbelievable,” Linklater said.
That collaborative process left a lasting impression on Deutch, who recalled how Linklater absorbed details from rehearsal and folded them back into the script.
“I remember learning very early on that Rick is a very good listener, so if you don’t want it to end up in the script in the next draft, don’t say it in rehearsal. It’s gonna be in there, which was really fun and surprising,” she said.
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A lasting bond
Produced by Annapurna Pictures and distributed by Paramount Pictures, “Everybody Wants Some!!” follows a group of college baseball players navigating the days before classes begin, with all the swagger, uncertainty and mischief that come with newfound independence. Like “Dazed and Confused,” the film avoids a traditional, plot-heavy structure, finding its rhythm in conversations, parties and small moments between characters.
Part of what has kept the movie resonant a decade later is that easy chemistry. The cast spoke about the production not as a routine job, but as a genuinely joyful experience, one shaped by rehearsal, shared time and the rare feeling that everyone was building something together.
“A lot of comedies, you hear how miserable everybody is sometimes, but this wasn’t that. We just caught that groove,” Linklater said.
The film also marked an important starting point in several cast members’ careers. Powell, who has since starred in films including “Top Gun: Maverick,” “Twisters” and Linklater’s “Hit Man,” was among those whose profile rose significantly in the years after the movie’s release. Deutch later reunited with Powell in “Set It Up” and returned to work with Linklater in “Nouvelle Vague.”
Sunday’s reunion underscored why “Everybody Wants Some!!” has remained so beloved a decade later. Watching the cast joke with one another onstage, it was clear the same easy chemistry that gives the film its charm is still there.
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