One of the biggest surprises last year in streaming was the “how is it this good” basketball drama starring John Stamos. It’s called Big Shot and if you haven’t watched it yet, go do so now. As someone who is not a fan of sports, I was hesitant but gave it a (big) shot because… it’s John Stamos.
I was not disappointed. Big Shot is funny, it’s got heart, and it’s even a bit soapy. All the things that make a good time. The entire cast is likeable and well developed throughout the 10-episode season. We can confirm season 2 will also be 10 episodes, despite rumors that it would be shorter.
Big Shot also has the distinct honor of being the FIRST LGBT kiss on Disney+ (link is a spoiler). Yes, you read that right. They beat High School Musical The Musical The Series to it by a few weeks. And it was beautifully played by both actors. We’re trying not to spoil things here with character names or genders because the show is that darn good.
Big Shot Benefits From New LGBT Focus
Disney is trying desperately to correct the hurt they caused by staying silent for too long on Florida’s Don’t Say Gay bill. That gives us hope that season 2 will ramp up its focus on the LGBT relationship that blossomed in the latter half of Big Shot season 1. Suffice it to say, quite a bit has changed in the past year. After news broke of The Owl House‘s censorship and cancellation, current and former Disney creatives, including the creator of Gravity Falls, started speaking out on Twitter about Disney’s not-so-secret habit of eliminating any LGBT content before it hit the airwaves.
After the Florida controversy, more and more staff spoke out. This led to Disney executives making strong statements commiting to greater LGBT representation. Not long after, Disney hired a brand new Executive Vice President of Global Communications (Kristina Schake) who just happens to be a cofounder to the American Foundation for Equal Rights, an organization that helped defeat the Prop 8 Gay Marriage ban. Talk about a turnaround! Around this same time, it was revealed that an LGBT kiss had been reinstated into this summer’s Lightyear film. Next, Disney announced plans to add Love Victor to Disney+, reversing a blatantly homophobic decision made in 2020 to move the series to Hulu. These changes give us hope that Big Shot season 2 will be free to explore its “historical for Disney” relationship.
Synopsis
Big Shot follows Marvyn, a hothead men’s NCAA basketball who is ousted and begrudgingly takes a job at an all-girls high school. He soon learns that teenage girls are more than just X’s and O’s moving on a court. They require empathy and vulnerability –something Coach Korn is not familiar with.
Trailer
Are you hyped for the return of Big Shot?
Drew Ryan is a film, TV, and Disney geek. He has degrees in English, Student Personnel Administration, and Library & Information Science from Lawrence University, Concordia University-Wisconsin, and University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Interested in the minutia and licensing of streaming service content, he is always publishing lists, suggestions, and advocating for Disney’s missing library to be added to Disney+. Drew subscribes to Disney+, Hulu, Netflix, HBO Max, and Paramount+. You can find him waxing nostalgic over classic Disney Channel or geeking out over Marvel, CW shows, & Disney on Twitter.
