Abbi Jacobson has followed up her award-winning feminist stoner-comedy, Broad City, with a TV reimagining of the 1992 film, A League Their Own, about the formation of America’s first professional women’s baseball team. Along with co-star Chante Adams, Abbi talks to Oliver Hall about how far we still need to go for women to be treated equally in sports.
As a writer and performer what made A League of Their Own, the natural next step for you, after Broad City?
Abbi: “When (co-creator) Will (Graham) approached me with this, I didn’t know what the next step was going to be, but I couldn’t say no to this. This was a film that I loved as a kid, I still love it so much, it really inspired and impacted me. When he asked me to do this with him, I was in the middle of filming Broad City and I had no idea how I was going to do both, but I just was like, ‘yes!’ The thing I loved about it so much, was that it is so different than Broad City.”
“The main part of us was that were not remaking the film, but reimagining it. Harnessing the spirit and the joy of the friendships within the film, but also really shifting focus to tell a lot of the stories that weren’t able to be told in the film. Penny hinted at a lot of things. In 92, she couldn’t tell the stories that we can now.”
How much do you think things have progressed in women’s sports in those 30 years since the original A League of Their Own was made?
Chante: “Not as much as they should have! Strides have definitely been made when it comes to women in sports and being more inclusive. However, there are still a lot of improvements that can be made, especially when it comes to the payment of the players as it equates to male athletes and these women where they deserve to be.”
Abbi: “It’s not equal until we don’t say ‘women’s’ in front of it. You don’t say ‘men’s hockey’. We should all just play this sport without our gender in front of it. It’s the same thing with TV shows. It’s like a ‘woman’s show’… We have a long way to go!”
What impact do you hope this show has on the queer community specifically?
Chante: “I hope that queer individuals, especially of the older generation, feel seen. As they watch our show and witness people like Maybelle Blair come out at 95 years old, I hope they realize it’s never too late to be their most authentic selves. I hope that queer folk of our generation continue to thrive as wonderfully made and beautiful individuals. I want this show to serve as a gigantic hug to the LGBTQIA+ community. We see you, we are you, we love you!”
The First Season of A League of Their Own can be binge-watched now on Prime Video.
