Though Wednesday’s Red Sox game was played at Yankee Stadium, one wouldn’t know it by the crowd at Fenway Park.
Loyal Sox fans decked out in home team garb filled the stands along the red carpet, which ran from home plate to first base, for the world premier of the film “Fever Pitch.” Local and national media flanked the crimson walkway eager to get some words from the stars of the movie, which follows the romance of a die-hard Sox fan, Ben, played by Jimmy Fallon, and his new love interest, Lindsey, played by Drew Barrymore, straight to Boston’s World Series victory.
“I hope, somehow, we’re part of Red Sox nation,” Fallon said as he addressed the crowd alongside co-star Barrymore and filmmakers Peter and Bobby Farrelly. Later, he dropped his microphone and praised the crowd, yelling “You guys are the best!”
Fallon’s co-star Willie Garson, best know for his portrayal of Stanford Blatch on HBO’s “Sex and the City,” joked about how easy it was for him to transition from giving advice to Manhattan’s fearless foursome to sharing a love of sports with Fallon.
“[Fallon’s] actually a woman and I think that comes across in the film,” he said. “He’s very feminine.”
In what Barrymore called “a love letter to your team and city,” she gushed over the film’s authenticity and said it was “so cool” to include real shots of Fenway Park, Sox fans and the World Series victory.
Mayor Thomas M. Menino was also on-hand for the event and praised the Farrelly brothers for their respect for the Red Sox and for Boston, calling them “much more New England than they are Hollywood.”
Nick Hornby, who originally wrote the novel on which the film is based, centered on England’s obsession with soccer, said he was okay with modifying it to have greater appeal.
“To be accepted by an American audience, the sport had to change,” he said. “It’s silly to be prissy about what that sport is.”
However, focusing the film on the Sox seemed like a natural choice for the Farrellys who have roots in New England.
“I started paying attention to the Sox in ’67,” Peter Farrelly said.
“I’ve been a die-hard ever since.”
For the filmmakers and fans alike, the timing for the film could not have been better. Though, Peter Farrelly said he was not prepared to shoot the Sox’ World Series victory. The crew did not have cameras, tickets or passes to the game, but, luckily, they were able to work it out, he said.
“It was very difficult to get that made,” he said. “Sometimes things wait for their right time.”
Hometown heroes also had their brush with celebrity Wednesday as multiple Red Sox players showed up fresh from their victory earlier that day including David Ortiz, Tim Wakefield, Jason Varitek, Trot Nixon, Kevin Millar and Johnny Damon.
As Sox fans covered in face paint waved “Fever Pitch” flags and foam fingers, Fallon was able to capture the excitement of the last year for the fans, for the team and for himself.
“Red Sox are beyond baseball,” he said. “It’s like family, like a religious thing. I got that.”
“Fever Pitch” opens Friday.
