The name’s Powers. Chad Powers. And he’s coming (back) to a screen near you.
Hulu ordered Eli Manning’s character “Chad Powers” to be made into its own comedy series, according to a company press release. Manning created and transformed into Powers for an episode of his docuseries “Eli’s Places” after Manning’s curiosity about the college football walk-on process led him to try out at Penn State under the pseudonym and disguise. With help from a special effects artist and Matthew McConaughey-like persona, Manning successfully tried out to be a Nittany Lion. He almost made it too, as Penn State assistants took a natural liking to the two-time Super Bowl champion before head coach James Franklin, the only person seemingly in the know about Manning’s true identity, outed Powers at the end of tryouts.
The episode aired on ESPN in September 2022. It was produced by Peyton Manning’s media company Omaha Productions.
“The love for Chad Powers has surprised me in spectacular ways,” Manning said in a statement. “I played 16 years in the NFL, but now when I’m in a restaurant or walking through an airport, it’s not uncommon for fans to scream, ‘Hey Chad!’”
The new series will be co-written and -created by Glen Powell, the actor who played Jake “Hangman” Seresin in the box-office hit “Top Gun: Maverick,” and writer/producer Michael Waldron, known for “Loki” and “Rick and Morty.” Both will serve as executive producers along with ESPN and Omaha Productions’ Peyton Manning, Jamie Horowitz and Ben Brown.
“I hope Glen is working on his QB skills, I saw him throw a football in Maverick…he has some work to do!!” Manning said on X, formerly known as Twitter, on Thursday.
In the new Hulu series, bad behavior dismantles hotshot QB Russ Holliday’s college career, causing him to go incognito and walk onto a struggling Southern football team as the charming Chad Powers.
“We’re both diehard college football fans,” Powell and Waldron said in the release. “When we saw Eli as Chad Powers, we knew that was the way into a big, fun story about this world. We’re excited to be part of this team, and can’t wait to get Chad in the game. Think fast, run fast.”
Get ready to Think Fast, Run Fast, @glenpowell. pic.twitter.com/nLNf5COZ3E
— Omaha Productions (@OmahaProd) February 22, 2024
It is yet another media venture for the Manning brothers. Ahead of the 2023 season, both Peyton and Eli Manning announced their alternate “Monday Night Football” telecast on ESPN2 in partnership with Omaha Productions.
The release date for the Hulu series has not yet been announced, so stay ready to think fast, run faster to a screen near you.
(Photo: Amir Hamja / Bloomberg via Getty Images)
