Moviefone also attended an in-person press conference with filmmakers Tyree Dillihay and Michelle Raimo Kouyate. Here are five things we learned from them.

Related Article: Movie Review ‘GOAT’

1) Andre Iguodala Was A Key Consultant On ‘GOAT’

Will (Caleb McLaughlin) in Columbia Pictures and Sony Pictures Animation’s ‘Goat’. © 2025 CTMG, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

When talking about coming up with the real life basketball moves that are used in ‘GOAT’, director Tyree Dillihay reveals that they could not have done it without the help of basketball legend Andre Iguodala.

Tyree Dillihay: Anybody know the name Andre Iguodala? He’s won a few championships. He played with Stephen Curry. He’s had an illustrious basketball career. He’s our basketball consultant. He’s a genius. We call him a beautiful basketball mind. And the reason why is because he accomplished more in two hours than we could have accomplished in months. That’s how long we were kind of banging our heads.

2) Cutting Great Scenes Is Not Easy, But Can Be Necessary

Tyree Dillihay at ‘GOAT’ filmmaker digital release press conference. Photo: Tessa Smith.

Along with the digital release of ‘GOAT’ comes bonus content, including deleted scenes. One scene in particular introduces the Thorns players and was a favorite of the filmmakers, but after a lot of debate, they decided it needed to go.

Tyree Dillihay: That’s the first time you actually see the locker room. We wanted the audience to experience the locker room and this fulfillment of being a professional through Will’s eyes. If you see it too early, it kind of ruins the surprise. Whereas if you hold it long enough so you can experience it through Will’s eyes, we feel it had greater impact.

Michelle Raimo Kouyate at ‘GOAT’ filmmaker digital release press conference. Photo: Tessa Smith.

Michelle Raimo Kouyate: We also wanted to meet the team through Will’s eyes. Jett, that was a different story because she was the second lead. But the rest of the team, we needed to meet through his eyes.

3) Steph Curry Had A Lot Of Input On ‘GOAT’ 

(L to R) Ayesha Curry and Stephen Curry at the World Premiere of Columbia Pictures and Sony Pictures Animation’s ‘Goat’ at AMC Century City on February 06, 2026 in Los Angeles, California. Photo by Eric Charbonneau/Sony Pictures via Getty Images.

Producer Steph Curry is a busy man, but he still found time to help the filmmakers make ‘GOAT’ the best it could be.

Michelle Raimo Kouyate: He was really instrumental in helping us figure out the reality of the game play. Even though it’s animals, he really helped us with that. He gave us thoughts on what it was like to be a new player that was different from everyone else and breaking new ground. He also gave us input on what it’s like to be a superstar with all the pressures that come along with that. And he’s an incredible voice actor. He voices Lenny. So he was very influential.

4) Tyree Dillihay’s Relationship With His Mother Had A Huge Impact On Will Harris’ Story In ‘GOAT’

(L to R) Michelle Raimo Kouyate and Tyree Dillihay at ‘GOAT’ filmmaker digital release press conference. Photo: Tessa Smith.

The story of ‘GOAT’ went through a lot of revisions, over 2,000 to be exact. Tyree Dillihay’s relationship with his mother was a big inspiration when rounding out the character of Will Harris.

Michelle Raimo Kouyate: Tyree grew up with a single mom and it was really the essence of that story, Tyree’s story, that mom who believed in him, in a dream that a black kid from Inglewood would become an artist. His mom really believed in him in that way so that was the underpinnings of the story. It was always in what we understood of the character, but we didn’t always have it in the movie. We realized when we were screening it that we needed to bring that into the movie. It gave the character a whole other reason and it gave you an understanding of who he was and how much rode on him.

5) ‘GOAT’ Is A Love Letter To All The Things Tyree Dillihay Loves

(L to R) Olivia (Nicola Coughlan), Will (Caleb McLaughlin), Jett (Gabrielle Union), Archie (David Harbour), Modo (Nick Kroll) and Lenny (Stephen Curry) in Columbia Pictures and Sony Pictures Animation’s ‘Goat’. © 2026 CTMG, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

For Tyree Dillihay, ‘GOAT’ is a dream project. He put blood, sweat, tears, and everything he loves into making this film.

Tyree Dillihay: This movie is a love letter to all the things that I love. I love basketball. I love sneaker culture. I love fashion. I love tech. I love the game. I love cartoons. Like everything that I love is in this movie. Talk about a dream project. This is mine. This is me. I’m very happy to be in every single frame of the film because I wanted to feel everything that I love. I hope it exudes through the film. You ever watch a piece of the film and you might get goosebumps? That’s what I’m talking about. There’s been times where we’ve looked at the film, Michelle and I. We’ve cried numerous times. We’ve seen this thing a million times and we keep crying.

(L to R) Archie (David Harbour), Jett (Gabrielle Union), Will (Caleb McLaughlin), Lenny (Stephen Curry), Olivia (Nicola Coughlan) and Modo (Nick Kroll) in Columbia Pictures and Sony Pictures Animation’s ‘GOAT’. Photo: Sony Pictures Animation. © 2026 CTMG, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

What is the plot of ‘GOAT’?

The story follows Will, a small goat with big dreams who gets a once-in-a-lifetime shot to join the pros and play roarball – a high-intensity, co-ed, full-contact sport dominated by the fastest, fiercest animals in the world. Will’s new teammates aren’t thrilled about having a little goat on their roster, but Will is determined to revolutionize the sport and prove once and for all that “smalls can ball!”

Who is in the cast of ‘GOAT’?

Will (Caleb McLaughlin) in Columbia Pictures and Sony Picture Animation’s ‘GOAT’. Photo: Sony Pictures Animation. © 2025 CTMG, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

List of Movies and TV Shows Featuring Caleb McLaughlin:

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