Next Goal Wins Trailer Reveals Taika Waititi’s First Post-Thor Film

Taika Waititi’s upcoming soccer movie Next Goal Wins. has received its first official trailer. The film focuses on the real-life coach Thomas Rongen (Michael Fassbender), who led the American Samoa national team in their attempt to qualify for the 2014 FIFA World Cup. In addition to directing Next Goal Wins, Waititi co-wrote the screenplay with Iain Morris, which is based on the documentary of the same name.

Today, Searchlight Pictures has shared the first full official trailer for Next Goal Wins. Check it out below:

The trailer opens on Rongen being fired by a tribunal of higher-ups, which include cameoing celebrities Will Arnett and Elisabeth Moss. Then the trailer follows him to American Samoa for plenty of Ted Lasso-esque antics while intertitles celebrate the awards that Waititi has lost, which make him perfect for this story about “the greatest losing streak in history.”

Next Goal Wins is a Return to the Old Taika Waititi

Lately Waititi’s name has largely been associated with huge franchises and blockbuster tentpoles. This all began when he directed 2017’s Thor: Ragnarok for the Marvel Cinematic Universe. He doubled down on the franchise by following that up with 2022’s Thor: Love and Thunder, but he has also branched out among Disney’s franchises and is set to helm an upcoming Star Wars feature in addition to being part of the The Mandalorian cast, voicing the droid IG-11. He also held a villainous role in the Ryan Reynolds smash hit Free Guy in 2021.

However, before his string of blockbusters, Waititi cut his teeth making smaller films in his native New Zealand. These include the 2014 vampire mockumentary What We Do in the Shadows and 2016 Sam Neill tragicomedy Hunt for the Wilderpeople. He made a brief return to his old style for the more pared-down Jojo Rabbit, a childhood tale about life in Nazi Germany that won him an Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay.

Related: Every Taika Waititi Movie, Ranked

Next Goal Wins will be the first time he has operated in that smaller mode since Jojo Rabbit. It also might be the last time he directs a similar film for some time. Considering his rumored and confirmed commitments include Star Wars, Akira, Time Bandits, and Tower of Terror, he has a lot of major films on his plate in the coming years.

Source: Searchlight Pictures