Root for the Underdogs of Poms

Underdog sports comedies come in all shapes and sizes, but we’re pretty sure audiences have never seen anything quite like POMS. The inspirational comedy from director Zara Hayes stars Diane Keaton and Jacki Weaver as feisty members of a retirement community who agree to start a cheerleading squad for seniors, and then risk it all to compete in a local cheerleading competition.

Hayes surrounded her two charismatic leads with outstanding support from Pam Grier, Celia Weston and the beloved Rhea Perlman. And while Hayes gushed about her entire cast when she spoke with AMC at CinemaCon 2019 in Las Vegas, she really couldn’t stop raving about the energy and dedication Keaton brought to POMS.

“Diane is a force of nature,” Hayes told us. “She brings this whirlwind of energy, ideas and creativity. She works so hard every day. I mean, we would be filming Monday to Friday and we'd wrap on Friday night, and then she'd call me on Saturday morning about an idea she'd had for the next week. Every week of the shoot! That's the kind of force that you're dealing with. There's a reason she is where she is in her career, and I saw it every day.”

Hayes says that POMS is meant to be a crowd-pleasing sports comedy that will appeal to audience members of all ages.

“It’s got a lot of laughs in it and it is ultimately a comedy about a group of friends,” Hayes said. “But to me, what's really important is that there's this kind of depth and a heart to it. It’s quite heartwarming, and in a way, it's sweet. So it kind of has, I mean, if you could make people laugh and cry in the same movie in 90 minutes, that would be an amazing achievement. And that's kind of what we thought we were going for.”

From the looks of the film’s official trailer, they achieved that blend of humor and heart.

When we asked Hayes about the scene from POMS that will get audiences most excited, she pointed us toward her rousing conclusion.

“I mean, it has to be the final dance scene, right? I mean, it's a dance movie, and so they go to a competition at the end, and I just can't wait for people to see these women doing their thing.”

You will be able to see these women do their thing, as Hayes put it, when POMS opens in AMC theatres on May 10.