Justin Theroux doesn’t understand the fascination with sports despite starring in the basketball-centric comedy, Running Point.
When asked if he was a sports fan during a panel for the new Netflix series at The Paley Center for Media in New York City on Feb. 26, the 53-year-old actor didn’t mince words, saying, “No. I honestly can’t fathom that people get so worked up.”
“I always turn to my girlfriend all the time, I’m like, ‘Aren’t you glad it’s Sunday and we’re out or walking?’” he said, referring to fiancée Nicole Brydon Bloom. “She’s like, ‘Yes, I am.’”
Later in the conversation, the cast — including Theroux, Kate Hudson, Drew Tarver, Brenda Song, and Scott MacArthur — were asked to pick a favorite sports team.
When it came to Theroux, he admitted, “This is true. I don’t know what running point means. I don’t know what it means. People have tried to explain it to me, I still don’t know.” (In sports, the term “running point” is often used to describe the player who initiates the offensive strategy.)
Song, 36, jumped in to ask The Leftovers star if he would go to a Yankees game. “Yeah, I’ve gone to Knicks games or I’ve gone to Yankees games,” he responded before feigning falling asleep and snoring.
“I’m an enthusiastic participant,” he explained. “When two teams who are about to try to get points together and then usually it boils down to, and this is not a joke. I like the blue and gray better than I like [other colors] … I wish the team could wear leather. If they wore leather, I’d be a sports fan.”
Despite showing little interest in sports, the actor stars as Cam, the eldest of the Gordan clan, in Running Point. Cam is forced to leave the family’s L.A. basketball team in the hands of his sister Isla (Hudson), who is also navigating the chaotic sibling dynamic with her scheming brothers Sandy (Drew Tarver) and Ness (Scott MacArthur).
“Look, don’t get me wrong, I love a rom-com. I love when it’s all about the relationships,” Hudson, 45, previously told PEOPLE of Running Point. “But to do a comedy set in such a high-stakes environment that’s about family dynamics — to me, [that] is just so much fun.”
In fact, just how little emphasis is placed on the romantic relationship in her character’s life was “one of the big things for me,” she explained, elaborating on why she wanted to join the show. “It’s not just all about romance.”
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Running Point is now streaming on Netflix.
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