The story of Everybody Wants Some!!
Everybody Wants Some!! captures something that doesn't get enough screen time in modern comedies: the pure, uncomplicated joy of hanging out with your friends before real life kicks in. The film follows Jake, a freshman pitcher who moves into a rambling college house in the summer of 1980, just days before the semester officially starts. His new teammates are a chaotic mix of personalities—cocky, funny, weird, earnest—and over the course of one extended weekend, they'll party, pursue girls, argue about music, and basically waste time in the way only nineteen-year-olds can. There's no grand plot twist. No life-changing revelation. Just baseball players being baseball players, which turns out to be enough. The setting—Texas, 1980, that specific moment before everything changes—gives the whole thing a bittersweet edge that creeps up on you.
Behind the making of Everybody Wants Some!!
What's fascinating about Everybody Wants Some!! is how long it took to get made. Richard Linklater, the director behind Boyhood and Dazed and Confused, completed the script way back in 2005, but struggled to secure funding for over a decade. It wasn't until Annapurna Pictures came on board that the project finally moved forward. Linklater shot the film in and around Austin, Texas between October and December 2014, which meant he could draw on his own experience of the Texas college scene—something that bleeds through every frame. The ensemble cast includes Blake Jenner as Jake, with supporting turns from Zoey Deutch, Glen Powell, Ryan Guzman, Tyler Hoechlin, and Wyatt Russell. Powell, in particular, brings a magnetic energy to his role. The film runs 117 minutes and carries a solid 6.7 rating on IMDb, though critical reception has been more generous than that number might suggest. Linklater's fingerprints are all over this—the conversational rhythm, the period detail, the way he lets scenes breathe—and you can feel how much he cared about getting it right.
What makes Everybody Wants Some!! stand out
Here's the thing about this movie: it's thick with testosterone and frat-house antics, sure, but it's also genuinely smart about what it's doing. One viewer noted that while the characters and their problems might feel surface-level at first, the script is tight, the cinematography is sharp, and it absolutely nails the spirit of 1980. That's not nothing. The film doesn't try to be Animal House—it's lighter, more thoughtful, more interested in the texture of a moment than in stringing together gross-out gags. The ensemble cast clicks in a way that makes you believe these guys actually live together, actually know each other's rhythms and jokes. What's striking is how much mileage Linklater gets out of small moments: a conversation about music taste, a failed attempt at romance, the way guys talk when they think nobody's listening. The period detail matters too—the soundtrack is killer, the fashion is authentically awkward, and there's a real sense that you're watching something that happened, not something invented for maximum laughs. I keep coming back to how willing the film is to let things be quiet, to trust that watching these characters exist is entertainment enough.
How to watch Everybody Wants Some!! online
Everybody Wants Some!! is currently available on Paramount+, which makes it easy to catch if you've got a subscription. Check the Where to Watch widget at the top of this page for the most up-to-date availability across platforms—streaming rights shift constantly, and Movie OTT tracks those changes so you don't have to. The 117-minute runtime means it's a solid evening commitment without eating your entire night. If you're browsing Paramount+ and looking for something that won't demand your full attention but will absolutely reward it, this is worth queuing up. The film's pacing is deliberately relaxed—it's not trying to punch you in the face every five minutes—so it's the kind of movie that works whether you're giving it your complete focus or half-watching while scrolling.
Frequently asked questions
Q: Who directed Everybody Wants Some!!?
Richard Linklater wrote and directed the film. He's known for Boyhood, Dazed and Confused, and the Before trilogy—movies that prioritize dialogue and character over plot mechanics.
Q: When does Everybody Wants Some!! take place?
The story unfolds in the summer of 1980, specifically the last weekend before college starts. That setting is crucial to the film's whole vibe—it's about that specific moment when everything's about to change.
Q: Is Everybody Wants Some!! based on a true story?
No, it's an original screenplay written by Linklater. That said, it draws heavily on the director's own experiences with Texas college culture and the baseball scene, which gives it an authenticity that reads like memoir.
Q: How long is Everybody Wants Some!!?
The film runs 117 minutes, or just under two hours. It's paced in a way that makes it feel shorter—Linklater doesn't waste time on unnecessary exposition.
Q: What's the IMDb rating for Everybody Wants Some!!?
It sits at 6.7 out of 10 on IMDb, though critical reception has been warmer than that aggregate score suggests. Viewers and critics appreciate it more for what it's trying to do than the number might indicate.
Final thoughts on Everybody Wants Some!!
Everybody Wants Some!! won't be for everyone. If you need constant plot momentum and high-stakes conflict, you'll probably find it slow. But if you can tune into Linklater's wavelength—if you're willing to hang out with these characters and let the film's rhythms wash over you—there's something really special here. It's a movie about friendship, about that fleeting moment before adulthood, about how sometimes the best times are the ones where nothing much happens at all. The cast is genuinely likable, the period detail is immaculate, and there's a warmth to the whole thing that lingers. Worth your time.
