The Last Dance on Netflix and ESPN
March 31, 2020
By Nik Roseveare
The Last Dance, the highly anticipated 10-part documentary series, will debut on Netflix beginning April 20th with two new episodes weekly. The series will also be available in the US on ESPN from April 19th.
The series, directed by Jason Hehir (The ’85 Bears, Andre the Giant), chronicles one of the greatest icons and most successful teams in sports history – Michael Jordan and the 1990s Chicago Bulls – and features never-before-seen footage from the 1997-98 season as the team pursued its sixth NBA championship in eight years.
In the fall of 1997, Jordan, Bulls owner Jerry Reinsdorf and head coach Phil Jackson agreed to let an NBA Entertainment film crew follow the team all season long. The result would be a remarkable portrait of an iconic player and a celebrated team – a portrait only now being revealed, more than two decades later, in The Last Dance.
As the series weaves its way through the tumultuous 1997-98 season, viewers will be transported back to how it all began – from Jordan’s childhood roots, the Bulls’ dire circumstances before Jordan’s arrival and how the team was built after drafting Jordan in 1984, to the struggles that eventually led to the team’s first NBA championship. As the series takes the audience through the Bulls’ first five championships, viewers will experience the off-court challenges, struggles and triumphs that were a part of the culture-shifting phenomenon created by Jordan and the Bulls.
It’s an unlikely scenario that serves as a fascinating backdrop for the inside tale of the 1998 championship run, with extensive profiles of Jordan’s key teammates including Scottie Pippen, Dennis Rodman and Steve Kerr, head coach Phil Jackson, and featuring dozens of current-day interviews with rivals and luminaries from basketball and beyond.
“Michael Jordan and the ‘90s Bulls weren’t just sports superstars, they were a global phenomenon,” said Hehir. “Making The Last Dance was an incredible opportunity to explore the extraordinary impact of one man and one team. For nearly three years, we searched far and wide to present the definitive story of an era-defining dynasty and to present these sports heroes as humans. I hope viewers enjoy watching our series as much as we enjoyed the opportunity to make it.”