Grand Avenue
Studios
presents
A scripted drama series
The Academy
where phenoms collide
IntenseAspirationalUnhinged
Shot like a sports documentary that got too close: handheld in the locker room, glossy under the lights, intimate in the dorm at 2 a.m. The game is the spectacle. The phenoms are the story.
Comps are All American's family dynamics, diversity and teamwork; Euphoria's psychological cost of extreme expectations; and Moneyball & Ballers', insiders view thru the eyes of a visionary.
Thank you for taking the time to visualize The Academy.
The dramatic storylines grew from years of watching my sons navigate the fiercely competitive worlds of travel and club sports, CIF Baseball Championships, and Division I football at USC, further heightened by directing the pilot for Phenoms, exploring the lives of the world’s top teen athletes at the IMG Academy.
The Academy reveals a world few see, where teenage athletes navigate blind ambition, NIL dreams, family dynamics, and the pursuit of greatness. Beneath their social media and scholarship offers lie stories of sacrifice, heartbreak, and triumph. The character arcs are limitless, but the journey is universal: dream big, fight through adversity, and take your best shot.
- Bruce
Bruce McAlester
Creator · Grand Avenue Studios
Welcome to the daily grind.
Sweat equity, sky-is-the-limit dreams, talent agents, sports psychologists, NIL, PEDs, Hall of Fame alumni, rogue parents and hidden romance all in a new series that mirrors the headlines of today’s emerging $100 billion dollar youth sports industry.
They live on campus. They compete for state titles, Olympic gold and each other for everything else.
Inspired by a chip on her shoulder.
Elin Bergstrom “Dr. B”
Mental Performance Coach
Series Regular
Dr. Elin Bergstrom, early forties, is the senior staff of mental conditioning at The Academy. Her reputation proceeds her as she’s been on the cover of “Psychology Today” and “Sports Illustrated”. What she wants most is to help young athletes win and she gravitates to the hard cases, those who tweak her own demons. Addicted to painkillers recovering from a career ending downhill crash at the Olympics, Elin lost her edge then regained it in med school. "Dr. B" is now the expert the coaches call when a superstar is falling apart. Her bedside manner is rough. Her results are not.
Her role in the show
Every student at The Academy ends up in Dr. B’s office. They share confidential secrets. What they do with her advice unfolds in unexpected ways throughout the season.
Series Regular
Alberto “Big Al” Peña
Owner
He bought the academy. Now he wants to build legends.
Mexican immigrant, tech guru and founder of the e-sports company Swish. After selling it, Big Al started investing in sports franchises. The Academy is his newest acquisition, and his most personal. He's done trading athletes and designing avatars. He intends to be a star maker. But not everyone is in his camp.
His contradiction
He swears he won't sell out the program. But the best recruits in America come with a price tag.
Playing time is what they all want.
Getting noticed means impressing the coaches, the donors and the internet. Some get so isolated their mental health is at risk.
Dre & X Banks
Football · 5-star recruits
Brothers who plan to go to college as a package deal. Their father plans to cash in on it.
In The Academy, the football team is led by two stars, DeAndre “Dre” and Xavier “X” Banks. These brothers are both five-star recruits and plan to go to college as a tandem.
Their father, Julius “Take It to the Bank” Banks, is a recognized motivational speaker and pastor who has bought a McMansion near The Academy. He wants the best deal for his boys.
Marta Alves
Soccer · Striker
The most photographed teen in her sport. Everyone wants a piece of her image. She wants to be judged by her goals.
Arguably the most photographed teen in soccer, Marta has graced the covers of many magazines. She’s the striker.
Off the field, sponsors, agents and teammates all want something from her. She isn’t interested in any of it.
Reworded from the 2025 deck · Bruce to confirm
Oakley Oliver
Tennis
A Canadian phenom since 8U who never learned how to lose. One early exit at a major spun her head.
The Canadian, girl-next-door tennis player has been a phenom since 8U. Her Achilles’ heel is that she’s not used to losing, and an early exit from a major spun her head.
Her closest friend is her little dog, who goes everywhere for “emotional support.”
Byron Barkley
Basketball · Point guard
“The silent assassin.” Raised in Atlanta foster homes, he trusts no one off the court.
Byron, a point guard referred to by the scouts as the “silent assassin,” was raised in foster homes in Atlanta.
As a result, he has issues trusting everyone… except his teammates on the floor.
Cal Hutchins
Football · Left tackle
6'6″, 315 pounds, out of small-town Nebraska. His work ethic is matched only by how hard he parties.
The heart of the offensive line is Calvin “Cal” Hutchins. The left tackle out of a small town in Nebraska is a mountain at 6′6″ and about 315 pounds.
His talent is only exceeded by his work ethic. However, he is quite a partier when he gets the chance.
Brandon Thompson
Baseball · Pitcher
A sure-fire first-round pick. Every coach wants credit for him. His weakness is loyalty.
Brandon is a sure-fire first-round draft pick. He’s been on the scouts’ radar, no pun intended, since his freshman year, when he hit the low 90s with his fastball.
All the coaches protect him, and everyone wants to take credit for his success. He just wants another girlfriend. His weakness is loyalty.
Hannah & Nicole Anderson
Beach volleyball
Identical twins from Laguna Beach with Olympic gold already. Nobody can tell them apart, and they use it.
The two beach volleyball teammates are identical twin sisters from Laguna Beach. The six-foot-two athletes have already won Olympic gold.
They enjoy playing tricks on the media, as most people can’t figure out who’s who.
Reworded from the 2025 deck · Bruce to confirm
Javi Martinez
Baseball · Shortstop
Out of Chula Vista: soft hands, quick feet, and a frame scouts call too small. Don't tell him.
Javi grew up in Chula Vista, a border town below San Diego. The community seems to breed top Hispanic baseball players.
Javi has soft hands and quick feet, but he’s a little too small for today’s home-run-hitting shortstops. Just don’t tell him.
Destiny James
Big Al's assistant
The one kid without a sport. Her ex-NFL dad sent her to learn the business, and she runs more of it than anyone knows.
Not tall, or fast, or even good at sports, Destiny is there because her retired NFL dad wanted her to learn the business. To survive without athleticism, she makes everyone laugh.
She’s also Big Al’s assistant and helps him keep it all together.
Reworded from the 2025 deck · Bruce to confirm
recurring guest star
Whose dream is it anyway?
Julius “Take It to the Bank” Banks
Father of Dre & X · Pastor · Motivational speaker
He bought a McMansion near campus and drives a white Bentley. Julius loves his boys (and he controls them). He wants the best deal for his kids, driven by greed.
At The Academy, the most dangerous opponents aren't on the other team. They're in the stands, holding the checkbook.
Scripted sports is having its moment.
NBC
Friday Night Lights
The CW
All American
Apple TV+
Ted Lasso
Netflix
Running Point
Apple TV+
Stick
Hulu
Chad Powers
All American’s ensemble. Friday Night Lights’ heart. Running Point’s boardroom.
Set where none of them have gone: the elite sports high school, every sport at once.
Bruce McAlester
Writer · Director · Producer Bio from brucemcalester.com · Bruce to approve
Created by
Emmy and Telly Award–winning filmmaker and USC Cinema/Television graduate, Bruce co-wrote and directed Con Man, distributed by Sony and screened at the DGA. The ensemble cast includes Ving Rhames, James Caan, Talia Shire, Justin Baldoni and Mark Hamill. Trained at RADA in London, he's known as an “actor's director” and has been a DGA member since 2004.
Also on the slate Confirm
Bruce wrote the original screenplay and is attached to direct the feature sports drama, Travel Ball. The project is in development and has a licensing agreement in place with Major League Baseball.