With the NFL’s return merging with the final month of regular season MLB, this is a magical time of year for sports fans, though there are more than enough great sports movies to keep that magic going throughout the whole year. One such baseball-focused classic film is Ron Shelton’s Bull Durham, whose stars Susan Sarandon and Kevin Costner just reunited 36 years after it hit theater screens.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, the two Hollywood icons didn’t cross paths for anything related to America’s greatest pastime, but rather for a good cause related to the cinema-driven nonprofit Better World Fund. The organization held an event timed with the Venice Film Festival, with both Sarandon and Costner serving as the guests of honor, and it looks like they were able to share at least a few moments catching up, on top of all the photo ops and further publicity.
Susan Sarandon shared her appreciation for the nonprofit on Instagram while also voicing her appreciation to talk to her Bull Durham co-star. As she put it:
Such a honor to receive an award from this great organization @better_world_fund And a double treat to spend time with the other honoree and my dear friend, @kevincostner Can’t wait to see the premiere of @horizonamericansaga 2 tomorrow ❤️
Like a champ, the Oscar-winning actress didn’t even namecheck their 1988 rom-com when tagging Costner, but instead referenced the world premiere of his western Horizon: An American Saga’s second chapter, which lost its release date in the aftermath of the first film’s low-faring box office debut. (And he’s still gung ho about the next two planned films.)
On the flip side, we’ll probably never see an expanded Bull Durham universe with multiple sequels, as interesting as it might be to catch up with these characters. So for now, fans will just need to rewatch Crash Davis and Annie Savoy’s romantic entagnlements to keep the drive alive.
Kevin Costner also shared a pic on his Instagram page from his reunion with Sarandon (as well as a shot from their Bull Durham days), saying this in his caption:
There’s nothing like catching up with an old friend. Great to see you @susansarandon—we’ve come a long way since our Bull Durham days.
Better World Fund and Studio Mao also shared a video from the event, as seen below.
It’s a wonder why fans haven’t been able to see the two living legends sharing the screen again in the decades since Bull Durham. Sarandon’s series Monarch seemed overtly inspired by the success of Costner’s Yellowstone, but her show was canceled, and he’s not part of that franchise anymore, so maybe their paths will cross once more on the big or small screen.
Bull Durham is one of many great movies streaming on Pluto TV, Tubi, and MGM+, and Costner’s excellence in it almost kept him from starring in Field of Dreams. But that’s another story.