ⓘ Details

Movie TitleRemember the Titans

Release DateSeptember 23, 2000 (limited) · September 29, 2000 (wide US)

Tagline"Left side, strong side."

Runtime113 min / 1h 53m

DirectorBoaz Yakin

ScreenplayGregory Allen Howard

Based OnOriginal screenplay based on the true story of the 1971 T. C. Williams Titans football team, Alexandria, Virginia

CinematographerPhilippe Rousselot

Country of OriginUnited States

Sequel / FranchiseStandalone film; no direct sequels

Budget~$30 million

Box Office$115.7 million domestic / $136.7 million worldwide — a strong box-office success that far exceeded its production budget

Rotten Tomatoes73% Critics / 97% Audience

Metacritic48 / 100 · 8.3 User

IMDb Rating7.8/10

MPAA RatingPG — for thematic elements and some language

Content WarningsRacial slurs and racist language, depictions of racial violence and mob intimidation, moderate profanity, brief depiction of a serious car accident, sports-related physical violence

Where to WatchDisney+ (streaming); available for rent/purchase on Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV+, Vudu, and Google Play

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👥 Main Cast

Denzel WashingtonCoach Herman Boone

Will PattonCoach Bill Yoast

Wood HarrisJulius Campbell

Ryan HurstGerry Bertier

Donald FaisonPetey Jones

Craig KirkwoodJerry "Rev" Harris

Ethan SupleeLouie Lastik

Kip PardueRonnie "Sunshine" Bass

Brett RiceCoach Tyrell

Kate BosworthEmma Hoyt

Hayden PanettiereSheryl Yoast

Nicole Ari ParkerCarol Boone

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🏆 Awards

⭐ Screen Actors Guild Awards — Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture — Nominated — 2001

⭐ NAACP Image Awards — Outstanding Motion Picture — Nominated — 2001

⭐ NAACP Image Awards — Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture (Denzel Washington) — Nominated — 2001

⭐ BET Awards — Best Actor (Denzel Washington) — Won — 2001

⭐ Young Artist Awards — Best Performance in a Feature Film – Supporting Young Actress (Hayden Panettiere) — Won — 2001

⭐ BMI Film & TV Awards — BMI Film Music Award (Trevor Rabin) — Won — 2001

⭐ People's Choice Awards — Favorite Dramatic Motion Picture — Nominated — 2001

⭐ Teen Choice Awards — Choice Movie: Drama — Won — 2001

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📖 Plot Summary

Set in Alexandria, Virginia in 1971, Remember the Titans follows the forced integration of T. C. Williams High School and the merging of its previously all-white and all-Black football programs under the newly appointed head coach Herman Boone (Denzel Washington), a Black man brought in over the beloved white coach Bill Yoast (Will Patton). Facing fierce community hostility and deep racial animosity among the players themselves, Boone takes the team to Gettysburg College for a grueling summer training camp, where the shared hardship of two-a-day practices and Boone's uncompromising discipline begin to chip away at the racial divides. Key players — fiery Black linebacker Julius Campbell and white team captain Gerry Bertier — evolve from bitter antagonists into close friends and brothers-in-arms, a transformation that slowly spreads through the rest of the roster. Back home, the now-unified Titans face a hostile school board, a biased officiating establishment, and a racially divided town, yet they storm through the season undefeated, ultimately winning the Virginia state championship and helping to begin healing the fractured community around them.

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❝ Key Quotes

"Attitude reflects leadership, captain." — Julius Campbell

"I don't care if you like each other right now, but you will respect each other." — Coach Herman Boone

"This is where they fought the Battle of Gettysburg. Fifty thousand men died right here on this field, fighting the same fight that we are still fighting amongst ourselves today." — Coach Herman Boone

"You're nothing. Bertier — I'm bringing you down." — Julius Campbell

"Left side!" / "Strong side!" — Gerry Bertier & Julius Campbell

"We will be perfect in every aspect of the game. You drop a pass, you run a mile. You miss a blocking assignment, you run a mile. You fumble the football, and I will break my foot off in your John Brown hind parts — and then you will run a mile." — Coach Herman Boone

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💡 Trivia

Director

Boaz Yakin was best known for indie dramas before this film; Remember the Titans was his first major studio blockbuster and remains his highest-grossing movie by a wide margin.
Yakin worked closely with the real Coach Herman Boone and several former Titans players during pre-production to ensure accuracy to the events of the 1971 season.
The director chose to open the film with a flash-forward to Gerry Bertier's car accident to immediately establish the emotional stakes before telling the full story in chronological order.
Yakin screened footage of actual 1971 game film and yearbook photos with cast members to help them understand the real people they were portraying.
Despite the film's Disney polish, Yakin fought to keep several darker moments — including the firebombing of Boone's house — to give the story its moral weight.

Cast / Casting

Denzel Washington was the first and only choice for Coach Herman Boone; his involvement was the key factor that greenlit the production at Disney.
Ryan Hurst bulked up significantly for the role of Gerry Bertier and went on to visit the real Bertier's grave as part of his preparation — Bertier was paralyzed in a real car accident in 1971 and later died in another accident in 1981.
Hayden Panettiere was just 11 years old during filming and was cast as the tomboyish Sheryl Yoast; the role helped launch her to wider recognition.
Kate Bosworth and Kip Pardue were both making their mainstream film debuts in notable roles; Remember the Titans was one of Bosworth's first major theatrical releases.
Donald Faison, already known from Clueless (1995), and Ethan Suplee, known from Mallrats (1995), brought considerable comedic experience to the ensemble.

Soundtrack / Score

The film's score was composed by Trevor Rabin, the former Yes guitarist who became a prolific Hollywood composer, known for his work on action and sports films.
Rabin won the BMI Film Music Award for his work on Remember the Titans in 2001.
The soundtrack blends Rabin's orchestral score with a curated selection of period-accurate soul, R&B, and rock songs from the early 1970s, helping to anchor the film in its era.
"Ain't No Mountain High Enough" by Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell is one of the most memorable musical moments in the film, used during the training camp sequence.
The use of CCR's "Have You Ever Seen the Rain" during team bonding scenes became one of the film's most iconic musical choices among audiences.

Location

Despite being set in Alexandria, Virginia, the majority of the film was shot in and around Atlanta, Georgia, primarily because of production incentives and available infrastructure.
The training camp sequences were filmed at Gettysburg College in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania — the actual location where the real Titans held their 1971 summer camp.
Some exterior street and neighborhood scenes were filmed in the historic districts of Douglasville and Covington, Georgia, which doubled convincingly for 1971 Virginia.
The football stadium scenes used various Georgia-area high school and college stadiums to recreate the atmosphere of early-1970s Virginia prep football.
T. C. Williams High School in Alexandria no longer exists under that name; it was renamed Alexandria City High School, though the school still honors the Titans' legacy.

Behind-The-Scenes

Screenwriter Gregory Allen Howard originally wrote the script in the early 1990s and spent nearly a decade trying to get it produced before Disney finally picked it up.
The real Herman Boone visited the set multiple times and served as a technical advisor; he was reportedly moved to tears watching Denzel Washington perform several scenes.
The film takes several dramatic liberties with history — most notably, the degree of community hostility and the specific events of the season were heightened for dramatic effect.
Disney's Jerry Bruckheimer produced the film, bringing his signature high-energy, crowd-pleasing sensibility that had made Top Gun and The Rock global hits.
The actual 1971 Titans were undefeated (13-0) and won the Virginia AAA state championship, making the real story nearly as compelling as its Hollywood version.

Nostalgia

Remember the Titans became a staple of school PE classes and social studies curricula across the United States throughout the 2000s, introduced to multiple generations of students.
The film arrived at a moment when Disney's live-action sports drama brand — following The Mighty Ducks and Rookie of the Year in the 1990s — was at its peak, and Remember the Titans is widely considered the crown jewel of that era.
"Attitude reflects leadership, captain" became one of the most quoted sports-movie lines of the 2000s and is still widely referenced in coaching and leadership contexts.
The film's depiction of racial integration through the lens of sport struck a chord during the year 2000 election cycle and continues to resonate during renewed conversations about race in America.
Denzel Washington's Coach Boone is frequently ranked among the greatest inspirational sports-movie coaches in cinema history, alongside Gene Hackman's Coach Dale in Hoosiers.

Easter Eggs

The Gettysburg speech Coach Boone delivers on the battlefield is loosely inspired by an account given by the real Herman Boone, who confirmed he did speak to the team there but in less cinematic terms.
The jersey numbers worn by the fictional players were carefully chosen to match or closely approximate the numbers worn by the real 1971 Titans players.
Several actual members of the 1971 T. C. Williams Titans team appear as extras during crowd and sideline scenes throughout the film.
The song choices throughout the film are all sourced from hits that would have realistically been on the radio in 1971, serving as a subtle period-accuracy easter egg for music fans.
The real Coach Herman Boone has a brief cameo appearance in the film, though it is easy to miss among the crowd scenes.

Misc.

The film grossed over $115 million domestically against a $30 million budget, making it one of the most profitable sports films of the year 2000.
Remember the Titans holds a 97% Audience Score on Rotten Tomatoes — one of the highest audience ratings for any live-action sports drama — despite a significantly lower critical score of 73%.
The real Gerry Bertier was paralyzed from the chest down in a car accident just weeks after the 1971 state championship, a detail the film depicts; he died in a second car accident in 1981.
Boaz Yakin's film was one of five wide releases on September 29, 2000, yet it still opened at number one at the US box office and stayed in the top five for six consecutive weeks.
The film's PG rating made it one of the few sports dramas dealing frankly with racism that remained accessible to family and school audiences, contributing to its extraordinary cultural footprint.

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