A documentary depicting the tragedy of two Tampa Bay Buccaneer alums will be directed by Steven Cantor and will be based on Nick Schuyler's bestselling memoir Not Without Hope.
The accident depicted in Schuyler's book occurred in 2009. Schuyler survived the crash while three others, including former NFL players Marquis Cooper and Corey Smith, as well as Schuyler's best friend Will Bleakley, were killed.
On the morning of Saturday, February 28th, 2009, the four men embarked in a 21-foot single-engine fishing boat owned by Cooper near Clearwater Pass, Florida. The men spent the day fishing in the Gulf of Mexico roughly 50 miles (80 km) off the coast. At around 5:30 pm, they attempted to lift the anchor to return to shore but found it stuck. A similar issue had occurred to Cooper a week prior. When Cooper used the throttle to try and dislodge the anchor from the bottom, the vessel capsized and all four men went overboard. In Schuyler's memoir, he recounts how over the next two days three other men succumbed to hypothermia. Schuyler was the sole survivor. Roughly 43 hours later, on March 2, 2009, he was found by the U.S. Coast Guard. Schuyler had clung to the engine mount of the capsized vessel in order to survive.
The film will include interviews with Schuyler, members of the NFL community, and members of the U.S. Coast Guard involved in the search and rescue effort. It was filmed on location in St. Petersburg, Clearwater, and Tampa, Florida, as well as at Lantica Studios in the Dominican Republic.
Four Down will have debut as the opening feature on April 24th at the Sunscreen Film Festival in Clearwater, Florida.
“On behalf of Nick Schuyler and his family, and our entire producing team, I’d like to thank Tony Armer and the Sunscreen Film Festival for honoring us with its Opening Night selection,” Schuyler’s agent and Prix Productions managing partner and Four Down producer Rick French said in a press release.
“This story unfolded before the world’s eyes over several days in Clearwater, so this is where we wanted our premiere to be held. It will allow families and friends to come together and celebrate the lives of Marquis, Corey and Will, while also recognizing the heroism of the St. Petersburg Sector Coast Guard members who risked their lives to rescue Nick that fateful day.”
After the debut screening the filmmakers will host a Q&A session with the filmmakers and give audiences an exclusive behind-the-scenes look at the making of the documentary.
After the accident in 2009, a report was released by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission who investigated the capsizing. The report includes interviews with Schuyler and an inspection of the boat. It concluded that the anchor line had been tied to the port-side transom as part of a ill-devised plan to free the anchor. After the anchor line was tied up, the vessel, which had a 200 horsepower, was throttled forward. During the throttling, the rear of the vessel was pulled into the water. As the vessel began to capsize, the four men were ejected into the water.
According to Schuyler, Bleakley swam underneath the capsized boat and retrieved PFDs for all four men, which they adorned. Bleakley also dislodged a large cooler from beneath the water which they used for flotation. The men attempted to retrieve flares and cell phones from the upturned vessel but were unsuccessful.
The men struggled overnight to remain on top of the capsized hull as 6-foot waves continually churned the boat. The water reached chest-high at various points above the partially submerged boat. Cooper and Smith became non-responsive and separated from the vessel between 5:30 and 6:30 am on the morning of March 1st. Bleakley became non-responsive and separated about 24 hours later. Schuyler was rescued roughly six hours after Bleakley disappeared. The investigators described Schuyler as displaying signs and symptoms of extreme hypothermia.
Bleakley, who was Schuyler's best friend and a former football player himself, was 25 years old. Cooper, who played five seasons in the NFL and left behind a wife and young daughter, was 26. Smith, who won a Super Bowl with the Buccaneers in 2003 and had his number retired by the Detroit Lions in 2009 after the accident, was 29.
“Four Down” is produced by director Cantor and Jamie Schutz of Stick Figure Productions, French of Prix Productions, and Stanley Buchthal and David Koh of Dakota Media Group. Schuyler, Wahlberg, Stephen Levinson and Archie Gips of Unrealistic Ideas, Snoop Dogg and Sara Ramaker of Death Row Pictures, and Gala Film’s Eric Schiermeyer and Jonathan Hazeldine executive produce.
Gala Film financed the $5 million documentary. Schuyler’s memoir Not Without Hope, which was originally published in 2010, will also be filmed in a narrative version starring Josh Duhamel and Zachary Levi. Dwayne Johnson and Miles Teller were both previously attached in other iterations of the adaptation. There is no release date for the narrative version and production has not yet begun.
You can watch the Trailer for Four Down below:
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