The 1980 Olympic hockey team was on hand for the launch of Disney's 'Miracle' pic in Hollywood.
Pic's Kurt Russell and Gavin O'Connor share a laugh at Disney's 'Miracle' premiere.
Pic's Nathan West, left, with Rob McClanahan at the Hollywood Palladium fete for Disney's 'Miracle.'
Disney's Dick Cook and Olympian Mike Eruzione pose together at the premiere for 'Miracle' in Hollywood.
The Great One Wayne Gretsky talks puck with Olympian Jim Craig at the premiere party ofr Disney's 'Miracle' in Hollywood.
HOLLYWOOD -- The day after the Super Bowl, Disney had Hollywood decked out in red, white and blue for a different team of winning patriots -- the 1980 U.S. Olympic hockey team.
The gold medallists got a thunderous ovation from the assembled glitterati following Monday night's El Capitan preem for "Miracle," the docudrama based on the team's surprise victory over the Soviet Union.Like Herb Brooks, the hard-nosed coach he plays,
Kurt Russell did his homework.
"I had a lot of tape to watch, and I watched it over and over," said the actor, whose 17-year-old son
Wyatt is an all-star goaltender in a Canadian junior hockey league.
And while Russell also spent some face time with Brooks, who died in a car accident in August after the movie was shot, the thesp said he felt it was another passing that informed his role. His father, a ballplayer and coach, died during the making of the film.
Count the captain of the U.S. team among those impressed by Russell's results. "Kurt was so damn good, it would have been nice for Herb to see the movie," said
Mike Eruzione. "Although knowing Herb he would have snuck in and out the back door."
The Hollywood Palladium was transformed into a mega-sports bar with scoreboards, TV monitors and a steady clickety-clack from revelers playing air hockey at the after-party. Among those on hand were Disney's
Dick Cook and
Robert Iger, producers
Mark Ciardi and
Gordon Gray, co-stars
Patricia Clarkson and
Noah Emmerich; hockey legend
Wayne Gretzky and wife
Janet Jones; a slew of Olympians including
Mary Lou Retton; and director
Gavin O'Connor, who was 15-years-old when the U.S. beat the Soviets and "sitting inches from the screen."
Contact Bill Edelstein at
bill.edelstein@variety.com