Stephen Curry and GOAT Cast Break Down Roarball, Underdogs and Team Chemistry – INTERVIEW

GOAT is built for kids, parents, and anyone who’s ever been counted out.

Sony Pictures Animation rolled out fresh details on “GOAT” during a press conference that leaned into the film’s sports energy, comedy, and big-hearted message. Director Tyree Dillihay joined stars Caleb McLaughlin and Gabrielle Union, plus producer and voice cast member Stephen Curry, producer Erick Peyton, and cast member Patton Oswalt.

The conversation also spotlighted the film’s visual feel, with the moderator calling out the movie’s “textures” as a standout detail while praising the overall look of the world.

“GOAT” is an original action-comedy set in an all-animal world. The story follows Will, a small goat with big dreams. He gets a once-in-a-lifetime chance to go pro in roarball. The co-ed, full-contact sport is ruled by the fastest animals around. Will’s new teammates doubt him at first. Still, he plans to change the game and prove “smalls can ball.”

The film hits theaters Feb. 13, 2026. Dillihay directs, with Adam Rosette as co-director. The cast includes McLaughlin, Union, Curry, Nicola Coughlan, Nick Kroll, David Harbour, Jenifer Lewis, Aaron Pierre, Oswalt, Andrew Santino, Bobby Lee, Eduardo Franco, Sherry Cola, Jelly Roll, and Jennifer Hudson.

How GOAT came to life

Dillihay said the project began with a simple wish from Sony Pictures Animation: make a sports movie in an all-animal world. Then, as he told it, the pieces clicked once the team realized the film “just so happened to be produced by a living GOAT,” a nod to Curry’s legacy.

Peyton said he and Curry joined the project years ago. They leaned into what sports stories do best. They put belief, pressure and growth in the center. Curry said the goal was a family movie first. The roarball arena is the stage, not the limit.

Will and Jett, and two kinds of pressure

McLaughlin said Will’s drive comes from chasing greatness. In the film, Will looks up to Jett Fillmore. Union said she built Jett with real basketball icons in mind. She pointed to Teresa Weatherspoon, Sheryl Swoopes, and Lisa Leslie.

Union said Jett’s leadership changes as the story unfolds. She said Will pushes Jett back into the gym, forcing her to level up again. Oswalt framed their dynamic in a simple way: Will starts without confidence and grows into it, while Jett projects confidence but hides doubt, and they meet in the middle.

Coach Dennis and the comedy engine

Oswalt described his character, coach Dennis, as an authority figure with zero authority. He said Dennis tries to guide a team that does not always listen, leaning into a style he summed up as roasting them to greatness.

Oswalt also said the first visuals helped him lock in quickly. He recalled seeing Dennis’ character design, then getting a look at the film’s massive environments and realizing his coach could not look more out of place, which shaped how he played the role.

Dillihay said the animal world opened the door for bigger comedy because the team wanted to exploit every possibility of that world, from authenticity to silly stuff.

Curry’s voice role and the film’s culture

Curry voices Lenny, a character he described as pure joy, but one who needs that energy channeled in the right direction. Dillihay said Curry treated the recording booth like game time. He showed up with humility, told the team he was coachable, and left sessions sweating like he played four quarters.

Dillihay said the movie treats basketball as pop culture, pulling from music, fashion, art, and tech, then amplifying the pageantry of pro sports entrances and fan energy to turn the volume up to 11. Peyton backed that up with a story about Dillihay pitching a montage of shoes, stickers, and pop artists to executives. Dillihay clicked it on and said, “That’s our movie,” then insisted, “this is the culture.”

Curry added that the behind-the-veil moments mattered too — tunnel walks, the outfits athletes spend hours putting together for a quick photo, and the team plane dynamic where personalities spill out and there’s space for everybody.

Small details that make the world feel current

Union leaned into one running joke as an example of how “GOAT” grounds its big world in real-life athlete behavior. She brought up the fancy toilet idea and tied it to the way success comes with new luxuries and new habits. She also pointed to Jett as the kind of athlete who does not care but totally cares, then name-checked details she clocked right away, including a burner phone and sneaker culture. She also cited a scene beat where Will takes Jett to a diner, and she has her first shoe, a moment she said helps pull the film into the present.

Dillihay said those specifics were intentional. He explained that he looked for small, real traits in the cast and worked to authentically infuse them into the characters, because quirks make them feel more identifiable and specific.

The underdog lesson, straight from their lives

Curry said he relates to Will being counted out, and he leaned on a lesson he learned early: stop comparing yourself and run your own race. He also called out a film moment that feels straight from his life — Will’s first time on a plane, trying not to get in the way while still acting like he belongs.

Dillihay also offered his own simple statement of purpose: the final product is proof in the pudding that if you keep putting in the work, you will earn your place.

What they want audiences to take home

Peyton said the goal was to make the kind of movie that lets families own the couch, with parents and kids watching together. Curry said he hopes the film plays bigger than sports, and that families leave feeling they are good enough, and that what makes them unique is sufficient.

Oswalt ended with a line that was half advice, half punchline. “If you’re a dreamer, you got to wake up first,” he said, adding that success comes from facing reality, then making things big. Then he tagged it one more time: “fancy toilets.”

GOAT releases in theaters on February 13th.

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