Plymouth this week scrapped plans to make a documentary about their fight against relegation in the Championship following Wayne Rooney’s departure.
Filming was paused last month following poor performance that ultimately led to Rooney’s departure, and there are no plans to resume.
Plymouth agreed to the project when it was announced in November, but it is understood to have been driven primarily by Rooney and his advisers. The former England captain has close ties to documentary production company Lawton Entertainment, which produced a one-off feature called Rooney, which aired on Amazon Prime Video three years ago.
Plymouth had hoped to increase their global profile and secure a windfall by selling the documentary to streaming services such as Amazon and Netflix, but they have been unable to do so while currently on a 10-game winless streak. It was determined that there was a risk that it would become a nuisance. After filming began at the club’s Harpers Park training ground in October, Lawton’s camera crew was only able to watch two Championship matches before being told to take a break.
Lawton also produced Coleen Rooney: The Real Wagatha Story, a documentary about her legal battle with Rebecca Vardy for Disney+. One of Lawton’s owners, Kenny Shepherd, is also a shareholder in Triple S Sports, the agency that has managed Rooney’s career since he was a teenager at Everton. Plymouth declined to comment.
Plymouth won one of their last 14 games under Rooney, but fell to the bottom of the Championship and Rooney subsequently left after 25 games. Director of football Neil Duesnip has also been criticized by the board for failing to appoint him and is expected to resign.
Duesnip arrived five years ago and led the club’s promotion from League Two to the Championship under managers Ryan Lowe and Stephen Schumacher, but his recent appointment has been less successful. Ian Foster was given 16 appearances last season, and Dewsnip and first-team coach Kevin Nancekibel were appointed in April to save the club from relegation.
Skip past newsletter promotions
Subscribe to Football Daily
Start your night off with The Guardian’s take on the world of football
Privacy Notice: Newsletters may include information about charities, online advertising, and content sponsored by external parties. Please see our Privacy Policy for more information. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and are subject to the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service.
After newsletter promotion
Nancekibel and captain Joe Edwards were appointed interim managers of the team that drew 2-2 with Bristol City on Wednesday, but are not considered candidates for the permanent job. Schumacher is set to return 13 months after being sacked by Stoke in September and is a low-priced favorite to win.
