Lovers of the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders rejoice! Two and a half years after the conclusion of Making the Team, which ran for 16 seasons on CMT, Netflix is reviving America’s love for the DCC with a new series titled, America’s Sweethearts: Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders. The streaming giant released their first trailer this week for the new series, which will premiere this summer.
While Making the Team was more of a competition-based series, America’s Sweethearts will be a behind-the-scenes look at the world’s most famous group of cheerleaders. The show will chronicle the 2023-24 season for the cheerleaders and will “document the personal stories behind the uniforms,” according to Netflix’s description.
Cheer and Last Chance U’s Greg Whiteley is among the executive producers of the new series, and he’s also directing. Other producers include Adam Leibowitz for One Potato Productions; Andrew Fried and Dane Lillegard for Boardwalk Pictures; and Ross M. Dinerstein and Rebecca Evans for Campfire Studios.
“We’re thrilled to see the results of a season spent with Greg Whiteley and a remarkable crew following every step of the way. The storytelling through this open access will captivate viewers episode after episode and Netflix’s global stage is the perfect platform to showcase it,” Charlotte Jones, executive vp and chief brand officer for the Cowboys and Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders president, said, via Hollywood Reporter. “We went into this understanding that the opportunity to transparently share the journey of our season, and the emotions, challenges and joy experienced along the way, is exactly what our fans and viewers would want.”
“The kind of access and creative freedom we need to make the kind of work we want to make is not easy to come by — especially when dealing with a brand as large as the Dallas Cowboys,” Whiteley said in a statement. “To their infinite credit, the Cowboys offered unfettered access for the year we filmed the DCC and left us alone. The result is an authentic portrait of one of the most storied and beloved institutions we have in American pop culture.”
Netflix wins bid for Jerry Jones, Cowboys documentary
The Cowboys cheerleaders series is not the only series coming to Netflix about America’s Team. An upcoming docu-series on Jerry Jones and the peak of the Dallas Cowboys franchise in the 1990s reportedly also has a home on Netflix. According to Puck reporter Matthew Belloni, the project has been purchased by the streaming giant for “just under” $50 million.
Belloni also reported last year that the deal is not yet signed, but Netflix has emerged victorious from a bidding war with other potential hosts, including ESPN and Amazon. Netflix has recently had major success with Full Swing, Drive to Survive and other sports-centered shows.
Last year, Netflix also found major success with Quarterback. It is a docuseries that took a look at three of the big-name signal callers in the NFL — Patrick Mahomes, Kirk Cousins and Marcus Mariota.
The docu-series will chronicle Jones’ roots and rise to the top of the sports world by buying the Dallas Cowboys and leading them to three Super Bowl championships.
Jones grew up in Arkansas as the son of a community store owner. He played football at the University of Arkansas and then went on to be wildly successful in business and in the NFL. Since Jones’ purchase of the team, the Cowboys’ value has ballooned to over $8 billion, ranking No. 1 in the league.
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