Playfair carries on hockey legacy in 'The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers'
Actor, who plays coach of rival team, says, 'We felt something special was happening'
Now the 28-year-old actor is enjoying starring in the Disney+ streaming series, "The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers," a reboot of the hockey trilogy, and he's already gotten a great response on his appearance in the first episode.
"The feedback has been fantastic, it's been really cool," said Playfair, who plays Coach T on the show. "I think on set, we felt something special was happening. But then to see the positive reviews and seeing a lot of people saying, 'I grew up, with the Mighty Ducks and now my kids are watching the Mighty Ducks and it's still the same energy that I fell in love with.'"
Hockey has always been a passion for Playfair. He's the son of Edmonton Oilers associate coach Jim Playfair, who played in 21 career NHL games as a defenseman with the Oilers and Chicago Blackhawks. His uncle, former NHL defenseman Larry Playfair, scored 120 points (26 goals, 94 assists) in 688 career games with the Buffalo Sabres and Los Angeles Kings.
Dylan Playfair talked with NHL.com about the Mighty Ducks, his hockey background and his transition to acting.
How integral were the Mighty Ducks movies to your childhood, which was already filled with a lot of hockey?
"Both my brothers played in Western League, I played in the BCHL (British Columbia Hockey league). The year I was born was the year my dad retired from playing and started coaching in the East Coast League. Hockey was a huge, huge part of our childhood. The toys we had at home, in the days of two-piece sticks, we'd have the blades and we'd take softballs and sock tape and that was our mini sticks for mini hockey. We spent a lot of time in dressing rooms, and it just made sense to go home and watch the movie that spoke to us the most directly. I remember thinking how cool it would be to finally have music playing during whistle breaks and things like this. The Mighty Ducks did such a cool job of embodying the thrill of a hockey game and then packaging it for kids my age."
What was it like being in the Mighty Ducks reboot with actors like Emilio Estevez, who is such a major part of the franchise?
"We got on set and I think everyone recognized that we were doing something that was already very special to people, so I think there's a different sort of pressure on a set like that. You're not re-inventing something, you're not creating something new, necessarily. But you're paying homage and you're continuing on a story that means so much to so many people. So, to have Emilio there, sort of anchoring the whole story and the heart of the production, that was really important. And to see the way he took the character and evolved it from the time we last time we last saw [coach Gordon] Bombay in the third move to where he's gotten to now, and his evolution throughout the series, I think it makes a lot of sense."
You've portrayed hockey players a few times in your acting career (Reilly on "Letterkenny" and Marty Howe in "Mr. Hockey: The Gordie Howe Story"). How much do you enjoy blending your two passions?
"Yeah, it wasn't something I thought was going to happen when I initially began my career. At the time, there hadn't been very many hockey players on TV, so I thought when I was getting auditions for hockey players, it was sort of a no brainer for my agency to put me out. One of my earliest projects was called "Stanley's Game 7," which is a 3D short film that plays at the Hockey Hall of Fame. I played a beer league hockey player who sort of becomes Wayne Gretzky in these daydreams of overtime, game-winning Stanley Cup goals. It was a really cool 3D project that we shot in Penticton (British Columbia). Again, going back to the way I left hockey, I really think I was receptive to these roles because I still love playing hockey. I think a lot of actors have this idea of being pigeon-holed, where I've met so many different kinds of hockey players, there's definitely an energy a player has, but there are so many different kind of personalities that I felt I could do justice to each character and not just make them a hockey player, but the person and a character who happens to play hockey."
I'm guessing doing this reboot is like the original Star Wars movies, where whatever is done in ensuing movies/shows, the die-hard fans will tell you what they think?
"Oh yeah, that's absolutely a thing. There were people who were not stoked about it, and they were letting me know that, 'This is so special to us. don't mess it up.' But it's cool. Like you said with Star Wars, that means people are passionate, that means people care. If you're going to draw attention to something, it means you're on the right track and to have that sort of go full circle and now see the shift and the vibes and those same comments now saying, 'Wow, it's really well done and we're really excited about it, and now I get to show kids the Mighty Ducks of my youth.' I'm very happy with how the critics have responded.
So what if you could go back in time and tell your child self that you'd be starring in a Mighty Ducks reboot?
"First off, I'd ask where the time machine is (laughs). I love the question and I'm not being facetious. Seriously, as a kid I was very inquisitive, and I genuinely believe, had I had the opportunity to go back and do that, I'd be a lot more interested in that.
"My first four movies/TV series, I behaved as if I've been there before, which I think is a good thing to do as far as professionalism and carrying yourself. But I never allowed myself to stop and take it in and say, 'This is cool.' Whereas on this set in particular, because of the connection to my childhood -- I'm getting goosebumps now just thinking about it -- I was standing on the bench and I looked down and I could see Emilio Estevez. We had a scene where we have this sort of callback to D2 where Emilio's character Bombay is looking down the bench at the Iceland coach, and they basically have a stare off and during that scene. I let myself take it in and have the goosebumps and say, 'Wow, this is cool. This is really manifesting from my childhood.' I think for anyone in any career, it's important to take those moments and stop and smell the roses. When you get there, take those moments and let them sink in and realize, hey, you're allowed to be proud of yourself, you're allowed to pat yourself on the back. Go to work, do your job, but don't let that element overshadow the ability to pat yourself on the back and say, hey, you're doing good. And I did that on this show and it felt really cool."
