Thomas Raisne, Getty, Madeleine Mulquin, Getty
Fast-rising, BAFTA-nominated Irish star Éanna Hardwick (The Sixth Commandment, Lakeland) will play Manchester United and Ireland football legend Roy Keane in the upcoming Irish film Saipan. variety Hardwick will star opposite two-time Oscar nominee Steve Coogan (Philomena, Reckoning) as Mick McCarthy, the former Ireland football manager who had an infamous feud with Keane.
“Saipan” is directed by Glenn Raeburn and Lisa Barros D'Esa, whose previous work included the critically acclaimed 2013 Irish comedy-drama “Good Vibrations” and the 2019 romance film “Ordinary Love,” starring Liam Neeson and Lesley Manville, and is based on an original screenplay by Paul Fraser (“Dead Man's Shoes”), with filming scheduled to begin this summer.
The film's title refers to the infamous “Saipan incident” that occurred when Keane was captaining Ireland ahead of the 2002 FIFA World Cup final in Japan. While training on the tiny island of Saipan, the soccer star, known for his short-tempered nature on and off the field, was at odds with McCarthy in a public and heated exchange, reportedly furious about the training conditions, tactics, travel arrangements, food and McCarthy's performance.
Subsequent interviews with Keane by Irish media caused a major clash in the camp, with Keane reportedly launching an angry tirade at McCarthy in front of his teammates, telling him to “shove the World Cup up his arse”, before returning to Ireland (McCarthy later said he had sent Keane home). The incident sparked major debate in Irish society about who was to blame, and Keane did not play for the national team again until McCarthy retired as manager in 2004.
Saipan is said to depict “the events leading up to Ireland's explosive 2002 World Cup run” and is being produced by Macdarra Kelleher and John Keville of Wild Atlantic Pictures (Evil Dead Rise, Cocaine Bear) and Trevor Birney and Oliver Butler of Fine Point Films (Kneecap, 66 Days of Bobby Sands), with Patrick O'Neill, Eoin Egan and Rachel O'Kane serving as executive producers.
Wildcard and Vertigo Releasing have acquired UK and Irish rights to the film, with a theatrical release planned for summer 2025. Bankside Films has launched global sales for the film, with Stephen Kelliher and Sophie Green serving as executive producers. Saipan is produced in association with Screen Ireland and Screen Northern Ireland, and will shoot in Ireland and Saipan. Greg Martin is executive producer for Screen Ireland, and Ursula Devine is executive producer for Screen Northern Ireland.
“Countless words have been written about what happened on the tiny island of Saipan during that fateful week in 2002,” said producers Kelleher and Kevil. “Next year, audiences will finally experience first-hand the feud between Roy Keane and Mick McCarthy and why it has been called 'the worst World Cup preparation in history.' We are thrilled that Lisa Barros Desa and Glenn Raeburn will be directing this iconic story with an equally iconic cast.”
The directors added: “We're thrilled to be working with this incredible cast and creative team to tell the story of an infamous moment in Irish and football history that drew battle lines across a nation, threw hopes, dreams and identities into disarray and briefly made a tiny volcanic island in the Pacific into one of the most famous places on earth.”
Beyond their acting careers, Hardwick and Coogan share deep ties to the characters they play. Hardwick hails from Cork, the same region where Keane is from (he is often referred to as the city's “most famous son”); Coogan's parents are of Irish descent (his mother was born in County Mayo), and Coogan has long considered himself Irish, receiving an Irish passport last year. McCarthy, who was born in England like Coogan, has an Irish father and played for Ireland at the 1990 World Cup before becoming manager six years later.
“Vertigo Releasing and Wildcard are thrilled to be partnering on Saipan, which is scheduled for a wide theatrical release in the UK and Ireland in summer 2025,” the distributor said. “The events on Saipan have divided the country, but we're confident everyone will love this once-in-a-generation Irish film, directed by the incredible filmmaking team of Glenn Raeburn and Lisa Barros Desa.”
Coogan is repped by Independent Talent and CAA with PR by Multititude Media. Hardwicke is repped by Curtis Brown and Susannah Norris Agency with PR by Multititude Media.
