On Sunday, Pat McAfee will star in a Super Bowl commercial promoting the NFL’s girls flag football initiative.
But while the commercial will mark the former All-Pro punter’s acting debut, it may not be long until we see him on the silver screen.
During Friday’s episode of The Pat McAfee Show, Endeavor CEO Ari Emmanuel discussed the role he played in recruiting McAfee for the Super Bowl commercial, which was directed by his close friend Peter Berg. And in doing so, the longtime super agent teased that the Super Bowl ad won’t be the final time that the ESPN star appears in one of Berg’s projects.
“[Berg’s] about to do another movie called Mosquito Bowl with the same guy that wrote Friday Night Lights, Buzz Bissinger. Brian Grazer producing, who produced Friday Night Lights. He’s going to be in it,” Emmanuel said, pointing to McAfee. “He’s going to be a sergeant in it. A true story — World War 2.”
“We don’t know if this is happening,” McAfee pushed back.
“No, no, no. This is happening,” Emmanuel insisted. “This is definitely, definitely happening.”
Based on McAfee’s comments, his appearance in the film has yet to be finalized. But that’s not because of a lack of desire on his or the film’s end.
“With that being said, as Ari knows, there’s a lot of business that needs [to be taken care of],” the College GameDay star said.
“He’s definitely doing it,” Emmanuel replied, later adding that the character McAfee plays in the Super Bowl spot — a comedic 1980s high school principal — could also be the subject of a movie one day.
I had SO MUCH FUN doing that commercial
“Peter Berg said you’re a natural..
You’re gonna be in a movie called Mosquito Bowl”
WE DON’T KNOW IF THAT’S HAPPENING @AriEmanuel 😂😂 #PMSLive https://t.co/a4dZFx00SA pic.twitter.com/yMvneoHgUV
— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) February 7, 2025
While McAfee is unquestionably already one of the biggest stars in sports media, his profile outside the industry is also growing. And although the development of The Mosquito Bowl appears to be in its infancy after being optioned by Netflix last year, it sure sounds like the film already has a spot saved for McAfee, whose acting debut in the Super Bowl as is already receiving critical acclaim.
About Ben Axelrod
Ben Axelrod is a veteran of the sports media landscape, having most recently worked for NBC's Cleveland affiliate, WKYC. Prior to his time in Cleveland, he covered Ohio State football and the Big Ten for outlets including Cox Media Group, Bleacher Report, Scout and Rivals.