Blue Miracle, the new “based-on-a-true-story” inspirational drama starring Dennis Quaid, is already doing well on Netflix. The film was released by the streamer on Friday and reached the number five spot on Netflix’s overall Top programs chart, and number four on the movie chart. Blue Miracle stars Quaid as Captain Wade Malloy, alongside Better Call Saul star Raymond Cruz and Coco‘s Anthony Gonzalez.
The film was directed by Julio Quintana (The Vessel) and co-written with Chris Dowling. Jimmy Gonzalez stars as Omar Venegas, the director of a financially struggling orphanage in Mexico. Some of the orphans join Quaid’s cranky sea captain on a voyage to capture a big fish. It is based on the true story of the Casa Hogar orphanage, which made headlines in 2014. That year, a group of orphans from the orphanage who had little fishing experience caught a 385-pound blue marlin, winning the Bisbee’s Black & Blue Fishing Tournament just five weeks after Hurricane Odile hit Cabo San Lucas. They won $258,325, which they pledged to the orphanage.
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The real Venegas told Netflix he hopes the movie brings the spotlight back to the real Casa Hogar. “I want everyone to have the opportunity to see Casa Hogar and how God is doing his work,” he said. “[God] made sure I was in the tournament. Things happen on God’s plan. God always gives his blessings wholly, He never gives just half.” The film doesn’t include one real-life twist that sounds perfect for a dramatic scene, notes Decider. Just after Venegas discovered his team would be in the tournament, he survived a car accident.
Quaid’s character does not share the same name as the real captain, but the actor told Fox News he enjoys playing in movies based on true stories than fictional ones. “I really like playing real people… to tell you the truth even more [than fictional],” Quaid explained. “When] I read books, I’d rather read fact [over] fiction and this story… it’s the story of a miracle that happened. And when you’re doing a movie about a real person, you can’t say ‘Ohhh, all this would never happen,’ because it did!”
Over the course of Blue Miracle, Quaid’s Wade softens up and learns from the children in unexpected ways. “You know, rather than just playing somebody who’s the same… there’s a growth in him because he starts out rather jaded with these kids,” he told Fox News. “[They] really taught him something. He was looking for redemption [and] he didn’t even know it.”
Quaid’s next two projects are also based on true stories. He is now working on American Underdog: The Kurt Warner Story, which stars Zachary Levi as the Super Bowl-winning quarterback. Quaid stars as Dick Vermeil, who coached Warner in Super Bowl XXXIV with the St. Louis Rams. The movie hits theaters on Dec. 10. Quaid also plays President Ronald Reagan in the upcoming Reagan, inspired by Paul Kengor’s book The Crusader: Ronald Reagan and The Fall of Communism.
