CULVER CITY, Calif. (March 28, 2008) – Sony Pictures Home Entertainment releases the heartwarming and captivating drama The Final Season on DVD April 15. The DVD will soon be available to order through the Little League on-line store.

Directed by David Mickey Evans (The Sandlot) and based on a true story, The Final Season follows a small-town high school team from Norway, Iowa (population 586) that lives and breathes American’s favorite pastime – baseball – and is known for one of the most winning baseball traditions in the country.

Emmy® winner Powers Boothe (TV’s “Deadwood” and “24”) stars as Jim Van Scoyoc, seasoned coach of the Norway Tigers who has dedicated his life to the team. Academy Award® nominee* Sean Astin (The Lord of the Rings, Rudy) plays Kent Stock, a determined young teacher who must keep the team focused away from the pressures of their final season and win their 20th championship. The film also stars Rachael Leigh Cook (She’s All That, Nancy Drew) as Polly Hudson, a city prosecutor who at first understands little about the town’s passion, but changes her outlook when a relationship with Mr. Stock blossoms. The Final Season shows that every strike can be met with hope, perseverance and faith.

The Final Season has exclusive bonus features including commentaries with the cast and the real life baseball coaches, a “Making Of” featurette as well as a featurette focusing on the Iowa town.

Synopsis:

From the director of The Sandlot comes the true story of an underdog coach and the team that must defend its legacy against insurmountable odds. In the small town of Norway, Iowa, the high school baseball team, led by legendary Coach Jim Van Scoyoc (Powers Boothe, TV’s “Deadwood”), has won 19 state championships, but the small town heroes are dealt a series of unexpected blows that threaten to rob them of their 20th championship win. When talk of a school merger gets serious and Coach Scoyoc is fired, then replaced by his 24-year-old assistant, Kent Stock (Sean Astin, Rudy and The Lord of the Rings trilogy), failure seems inevitable. Tom Arnold, Rachael Leigh Cook and Michael Angarano join an excellent ensemble cast in this inspirational family film.

DVD Bonus Features

• Commentary with Director David Mickey Evans, Actor Sean Astin, Executive Producer Carl Borack and Producer Michael Wasserman
• Commentary with Producer Tony Wilson and real life coaches Kent Stock and Jim Van Scoyoc
• “The Making of The Final Season” Featurette
• “The Real Season: The Spirit of Norway” Featurette


The Final Season has a run time of approximately 118 minutes and is rated PG for language, thematic elements and some teen smoking.

The film is directed by David Mickey Evans, Executive Produced by Carl Borack (Shiloh, The Big Fix, Alice Upside Down) and Sean Astin, Produced By Michael Wasserman, Tony Wilson, and Steven Schott, and based on a screenplay by Art D’Alessandro and James Grayford. It also stars Michael Angarano (TV’s “24”, “Will & Grace”, Sky High) and Tom Arnold (Cradle to Grave, True Lies, TV’s “Roseanne.”

"Academy Award®" and "Oscar®" are the registered trademarks and service marks of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

About Sony Pictures Home Entertainment

Sony Pictures Home Entertainment is a Sony Pictures Entertainment company. SPE is a division of Sony Corporation of America, a subsidiary of Tokyo-based Sony Corporation. SPHE’s global operations encompass motion picture production and distribution; television production and distribution; digital contest creation and distribution; worldwide channel investments; home entertainment acquisition and distribution; operation of studio facilities; development of new entertainment products, services and technologies; and distribution of filmed entertainment in 67 countries.