Color of Hockey: Reimagined adaptation of 'Youngblood' coming soon

William Douglas has been writing The Color of Hockey blog since 2012. Douglas joined NHL.com in 2019 and writes about people of color in the sport. Today, he explores the making of an adaptation of the hockey cult classic film “Youngblood.”

HAMILTON, Ontario -- Chris Nelson had the demeanor and tone befitting a demanding coach as he put young players through their paces at the Freelton Community Park ice rink recently.

“I want you to skate hard around the net, come down ice, and stop hard -- I want to see spray, I want to see snow,” he ordered.

Nelson wasn’t preparing the players for game. The associate producer and hockey consultant was rehearsing the young extras for a scene for “Youngblood,” an adaptation of the 1986 hockey cult classic that starred Rob Lowe, Patrick Swayze and Keanu Reeves in his feature film debut.

The new version follows hockey prodigy Dean Youngblood, who joins the Hamilton Mustangs and discovers he must face off against toxic behavior on the ice and within himself as he strives to become a professional player.

The film by Aircraft Pictures and Dolphin Entertainment is more a reimagining of the original than a remake. Dean Youngblood, played by Lowe in the original, is portrayed by Ashton James, an actor who is Black. The cast also includes Blair Underwood, who gained fame in the NBC legal drama “L.A. Law,” who plays Youngblood’s father, Blaine; Olunike Adeliyi is Youngblood’s mother, Ruby; and Alexandra McDonald plays Jessie Chadwick.

Filming wrapped up last week and details on the release date have not yet been announced.

“What I love about this script is that they did take the same structure; they use all the same character names, they use the same idea of what the plot was,” director Hubert Davis said. “It’s, like, ‘What are little bits and pieces that we can retain (yet) feel we’ve contemporized it enough that there’s little pieces that if you’re an original fan you’ll know are there, but still kind of make it our own?’”

Underwood said he knew little about hockey or the original “Youngblood,” but was attracted to the new film by its multilayered script by Josh Epstein, Kyle Rideout, Seneca Aaron and the late Charles Officer.

“Whenever I can see Black people in an unexpected light, and to tell those stories, portray those stories, I'm drawn to it,” said Underwood, who played Major League Baseball pioneer Jackie Robinson in the 1996 HBO movie “Soul of the Game.”

“It's a great script about family, about Dean's character, about Dean overcoming and learning, evolving how to be a man," Underwood said. "What does that look like in 2025 as opposed to the movie in 1986? It's all those dynamics of family at the end of the day, is what drew me to it."

Davis, who directed the award-winning 2022 documentary “Black Ice,” said a key to the movie’s success upon its release will be the authenticity of its hockey scenes.

The cast and crew recently completed filming scenes at the outdoor Freelton rink and on the ice and in the locker rooms at Sadlon Arena, home of Barrie of the Ontario Hockey League.

“You can always build sets, but then it feels artificial, right?” Davis said. “I think it actually helps performances for the actors to walk into an arena and onto the ice. It helps you become what you're supposed to be in the film when you see how players carry themselves. Then you’re not playing it as much as you get to see it and absorb it.”

James said shooting in Barrie allowed him to catch OHL games and draw inspiration from watching Black players like Barrie defenseman Kashawn Aitcheson, Erie forward Malcolm Spence and Erie defenseman Ty Henry, who each has NHL potential.

Spence is ranked No. 14 on NHL Central Scouting's midterm ranking of North American skaters eligible for the 2025 NHL Draft , Aitcheson is ranked 15th and Henry was selected by the Chicago Blackhawks in the sixth round (No. 163) of the 2024 NHL Draft.

“I went to watch of couple of their games, just seeing how they were interacting, feeling,” said James, who starred in the 2024 Canadian film “Boxcutter” and the CBC Gem web comedy series “Revenge of the Black Best Friend” in 2022. “This is about them to a degree, and for me wanting to bring as much authenticity as I can, and honesty.”

Davis and Aircraft Pictures president Anthony Leo said much of the credit for the hockey authenticity goes to Nelson, a former defenseman who was selected by the a New Jersey Devils in the fifth round (No. 96) of the 1988 NHL Draft and won an NCAA Division I Frozen Four championship with the University of Wisconsin in 1990.

The 56-year-old Philadelphia native transitioned to Hollywood when after his NHL dreams didn’t materialize and put his hockey expertise to use as an instructor or consultant for TV shows, commercials and movies, including the original “Youngblood.”

“I feel like some guardian angel was looking over our shoulder and just dropped him out of the sky,” said Leo, who’s a producer on “Youngblood.” “When we initially announced that the film was coming out, he sought us out and was, like, ‘I was part of the original ‘Youngblood.’ And we were, like, 'Absolutely, we need to work together.’ He’s the secret sauce that we didn’t know we needed at the time not only for his creativity in designing the plays but also his ability, experience, to get what he needs out of the players, to get them on side quickly because filming costs money.”

Nelson said the difference between the new “Youngblood” and the original is skating ability.

“In the original they had a lot of doubles that did the hockey work,” said Nelson, who also worked on “Miracle,” “The Tooth Fairy,” “Batman and Robin” and the Disney+ “The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers” series. “Today, even the people that don’t play hockey, they’ll know if an actor really isn’t skating. If you’re paying that much to see a movie in a theater, you deserve to get the best performance you can out of the actors. One of the things is they need to know is how to skate, and that’s what Ashton did.”

Nelson, Davis and James said filming “Youngblood” is a tribute to Officer, a former hockey player who became an award-winning Canadian director, writer and cinematographer. Officer was supposed to direct the movie but died on December 1, 2023, at 48 following a lengthy illness.

“It’s in Charles Officer’s memory,” Nelson said. “We’re putting our hearts, our souls, blood, sweat and tears into this.”