John Carew To Star In Football Drama Home Ground

NRK has announced that its NOK 70 million drama Home Ground (Hjemmebane) will star Ane Dahl Torp (Occupied) as the first female football manager in Norway’s Premier League, with John Carew as a player on the verge of retirement who returns home to end his career in Norway.

Home Ground will follow manager of fictional team Varg i Ulsteinvik, Helena Mikkelsen (Ane Dahl Torp), as she navigates her way through the misogynistic world of professional football, facing a lack of respect from players and supporters alike, all whilst under the threat of losing her job.

Creator and head writer, Johan Fasting, told NRK: “A story about a female football coach goes beyond being a coach. The series is about a woman who enters a male dominated world, so many will identify with the challenges she faces.”

Fasting is also clear about what John Carew will bring to the show: “We needed someone who has experience of football at the highest level and that was believable as a footballer… and after several auditions, he has shown promise as an actor too. Carew has a very good physical presence, and that is an important trait to have as an actor.”

Carew’s next project will be as half-Sami action hero Black Frost, planned as a trilogy of action comedies to be the most expensive Norwegian films ever made with each having a budget of around NOK 200 million. Kon-Tiki currently holds the record at NOK 93 million.

Home Ground begins filming in March through until October 2017, and is slated to premiere on NRK in January 2018.