NBA Player Kyrie Irving Announces He Will Star in and Executive Produce Haunted Hotel Movie
Kyrie Irving is headed back to the big screen!
The 26-year-old Boston Celtics player, who recently starred in the basketball comedy Uncle Drew, announced on Monday that he would be starring in an upcoming, untitled horror film about a haunted Oklahoma hotel, Variety reported.
Unlike his previous film, however, Irving will be executive producing the movie — a first for his career.
Teaming up with Imagine Entertainment’s chairmen Brian Grazer and Bobby Cohen, Irving will help tell the folklore-inspired story of the legendary Skirvin Hotel in Oklahoma City.
Amongst NBA players, the hotel has a reputation of being haunted, which was optioned by the production company from an upcoming Players’ Tribune article.
Despite opening in 1911 and welcoming dozens of traveling NBA teams since, many players have refused to stay there because of the extensive haunted history shared by fellow athletes, Variety said.
“Having had my own interesting experiences at the Skirvin Hotel, I connected with this idea immediately,” Irving told Variety. “To work with Brian Grazer is a dream come true, and I’m excited to bring this project to life with the Imagine Entertainment team.”
The hauntings reportedly began in the 1930s after the owner of the hotel had an affair with a chambermaid, who eventually died, according to the outlet.
This will be the second film that Irving has starred in. In 2018, he played the role of Uncle Drew in the self-titled comedy, which also featured former NBA/WNBA players Shaquille O’Neal, Chris Webber, Reggie Miller, and Lisa Leslie, as well as current professional player Nate Robinson.
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At the movie’s New York premiere in June, Irving told The Hollywood Reporter that his first time in front of cameras was a “learning experience,” but he looked forward to future opportunities behind the lens to “socially empower the people around me.”
“It was a learning experience: How to walk on a set, remember your lines, prepare every single day, how to deliver a scene, a lot of newness,” Irving said to the outlet. “I took it head-on and enjoyed it 100 percent.”
Irving joins a number of NBA stars who have already launched their own production companies and/or held a producing title, including LeBron James, Steph Curry, Kevin Durant, and retired player Kobe Bryant.
