Earlier this year, Bill Belichick and the University of North Carolina’s football program were reportedly in discussions with NFL Films to feature UNC in an offseason special of HBO’s popular Hard Knocks series. Just one week later, the deal fell through.
Some pundits theorized that NFL owners “weren’t happy about Belichick getting an NFL Films platform.” But, a new report from The Athletic suggests there may have been other factors at play, including Belichick’s 24-year-old girlfriend Jordon Hudson.
Here’s an excerpt on Hudson’s involvement in the failed Hard Knocks deal from the report:
Jordon Hudson, Belichick’s girlfriend, played an instrumental role in stopping the production, related to her request to be heavily involved in the project, according to multiple industry sources briefed on the negotiations.
After North Carolina hired Belichick in December, Hudson has served in an unofficial role at UNC to help out the football program, which includes being copied on all emails sent to Belichick. Hudson, who appears to be a sort of PR liaison to her boyfriend, recently made headlines for sharing a screenshot of an old email in the wake of Belichick’s viral CBS interview.
While there were no specific details regarding Hudson’s alleged hand in undermining the Hard Knocks deal, the report curiously stated that Belichick himself wanted the project to go through, according to what he wrote in his emails.
The Athletic also stated that the UNC-Hard Knocks deal came very close to completion. When the deal was reportedly at the finish line, however, production for the series was rather suddenly stopped and the project was scrapped. Two days after NFL Films was scheduled to begin filming, Jessica Boddy, who is the NFL’s vice president for commercial operations and business affairs and additionally serves as one of Hard Knocks’ executive producers, sent an email to UNC confirming the cancellation of the project.
The only explanation offered as to why weeks of negotiations had suddenly fallen apart? “The conversation took a turn we were not comfortable with,” wrote Boddy.
Ultimately, Belichick and UNC football’s messy fallout with Hard Knocks seems to remain shrouded in uncertainty.
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