Most televisions around the Commonwealth will be locked into CBS and Turner Sports throughout March Madness. If that madness turns to sadness, you have an alternative that also features a flavor of Kentucky.
HBO is best known for delivering fictional high-stakes dramas like The Sopranos and Game of Thrones. In fact, a GoT spin-off, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, recently aired its season finale. What you may not know is that HBO is loading up on content from Kentucky.
Murder in Glitterball City
You cannot operate a streaming service without a deep catalog of true-crime documentaries. In February, HBO Max rolled out Murder in Glitterball City, a two-part documentary that shares the sordid details of a love triangle gone wrong. In June 2010, the body of Jaime Carroll was discovered in the basement of a home in Old Louisville. Joey Banis and Jeffrey Mundt were charged with murder as they each shared separate accounts of how the heinous crime unfolded in the middle of a historic Kentucky neighborhood.
Born To Bowl
Don’t worry. Not all of the Kentucky content on HBO Max is that heavy. Ben Stiller is the executive producer for Born to Bowl, a documentary that is striving to be bowling’s equivalent of F1’s Drive to Survive on Netflix.
Born to Bowl follows five professionals on the PBA Tour. As you might suspect, some of these guys are characters built to shine on camera. In the opening scene of the trailer, Kyle Troup, who’s known as the “Bob Ross of Bowling,” is rocking a Kentucky t-shirt. Even though he’s originally from North Carolina, he currently lives in Louisville. The bowling shenanigans begin on March 16 on HBO Max.
If I Had Legs, I’d Kick You
Unlike the previous two selections, If I Had Legs, I’d Kick You is a feature-length film that brings the drama you’ve come to expect from HBO. Conan O’Brien makes his dramatic acting debut as a therapist for Rose Byrne, whose performance earned her a nomination for Best Actress at the upcoming Academy Awards.
What does this move have to do with Kentucky? A little more than 10 years ago, I watched the Wildcats make a run to the National Championship Game with the guy whose job was to promote Byrne as an Academy Award winner.
Richie Doyle is a UK grad who earned a producer role for the A24 film. A Hollywood insider of sorts, he made sure the independent film got in front of the right faces to help it become a critical success. In the fall, folks in Lexington got a chance to watch it on the silver screen at the Kentucky Theater.
So what exactly is If I Had Legs, I’d Kick You about? Richie described it as “Uncut Gems for housewives.” If you enjoy a film that puts you on edge, buckle up and stream the critically-acclaimed flick on HBO Max.