Ben Affleck takes the underdog road in ‘The Way Back’

It’s been a long hard road for Academy Award winner Ben Affleck who has battled an incredibly public divorce from former wife Jennifer Garner, along with a tumultuous relationship with alcohol, and for a while he really was at the bottom of the barrel.

But Affleck is not one to admit defeat and has found his redemption back to the big screen with the provocative sports journey The Way Back, which focuses on a burnt-out former high school basketball star who finds sobriety and new purpose in his life when he takes up the position of head basketball coach at his former high school.

A moving new trailer has arrived for The Way Back and this one will fill you with emotion. Check it out below:

Here’s the official synopsis:

Former High School basketball phenom Jack Cunningham (Ben Affleck), struggling with alcoholism, is offered a coaching job at his alma mater. As the team starts to win, he may have a reason to confront his old demons. But will it be enough to set him on the road to redemption?

For The Way Back, Affleck re-teamed with director Gavin O’Connor whom he worked with on The Accountant and who knows how to craft a compelling sports film, having created incredibly moving films like Warrior and Miracle. O’Conner is a perfect choice to helm The Way Back and you feel his blue collar roots shine out here with a film that follows an ordinary guy who has the chance to do things right again and maybe serve some higher purpose in his life finally.

Sports films always make for a great canvas for heroic redemption stories, and The Way Back uses its basketball scenes effectively to get its audience amped up for the strong character journey that Affleck’s Jack Cunningham takes here.

The Way Back will arrive in cinemas on March 5.

Image: Roadshow Films