Ryan Reynolds’ ‘Welcome to Wrexham’ Beats Los Angeles Lakers’ Documentary to Bag Major Accolade Despite Falling Behind Tupac’s Unscripted Series

Sports fans always love underdog stories. In a world where big-budget Hollywood documentaries are making rounds, the story of a small soccer club in Wales pulled off an unthinkable. Yes, we are talking about the Welcome To Wrexham docuseries revolving around the world’s third-oldest soccer club.

If we speak about the popularity of Wrexham AFC, the club definitely has a small fanbase compared to NBA side LA Lakers. Trumping a documentary around the Lakers would be a monumental achievement for Welcome To Wrexham. But the story of Wrexham has done it. 

Welcome To Wrexham wins a massive accolade

Critics’ Choice Real TV Awards are awards for nonfiction, unscripted, and reality television content. Established in 2018 by the Critics Choice Association and NPACT, it is given across various categories. The Best Sports Show is one of the categories. For its fifth edition, Welcome To Wrexham got the nomination. 

The other nominees were 30 for 30 (ESPN), American Ninja Warrior (NBC), Legacy: The True Story of the LA Lakers (Hulu), Like a Girl (Fuse Media), and Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel (HBO Max). However, Welcome To Wrexham trumped others to win the prestigious award. The win, especially with LA Lakers’ documentary on the list, caught the eyes of many. 

The award comes after Welcome To Wrexham won the Rockie Award for best docuseries recently. Rob McElhenney came up with the idea of the docuseries. McElhenney took his time off during the Covid pandemic to watch documentaries on sports. Sunderland Til I Die impressed the Mythic Quest show creator. The documentary acted as a catalyst for his wish to buy a soccer club.

McElhenney got a partner in the form of Ryan Reynolds, and they completed the Wrexham AFC takeover in February 2021. The duo announced the docuseries, and they released it on August 24 last year. It was an instant hit and remained the most-watched docuseries on FX. However, another series recently shattered the record of Welcome To Wrexham on FX.

Tupac’s unscripted series trumped Wrexham’s docuseries

Welcome To Wrexham garnered over 271,000 viewers for its first two episodes on FX. Meanwhile, Late Tupac’s unscripted series, Dear Mama, started with a bang of FX after its release in April. Reportedly 200,000 viewers watched the premiere of Dear Mama.

READ MORE: “Rob and Ryan [Reynolds] Committed Some Money” – Welcome to Wrexham Documentary to Have ‘Huge Focus’ on Women’s Team Following Historic Promotion, Wrexham Director Says

It built on the start and trumped Wrexham’s docuseries as FX’s most-watched unscripted debut among cross-platform viewers. The Wrexham docuseries enormously helped the club. It not only put the Welsh club on the world map but opened new avenues of revenue for the owners. It was a masterstroke from Reynolds and McElhenney, with recent accolades testament to it. 

WATCH THIS STORY: Wrexham Owners Net Worth Comparison

The way the 2022-23 season has gone for the world’s third-oldest club, do you think the second season of Welcome To Wrexham will be a bigger hit than the first one?