Overview
- Netflix has advanced production and promotion of The Sticks, a 21 Laps–produced hockey drama starring Michelle Monaghan that the streamer says is fictional and slated for release in 2027.
- On Aug. 11, Netflix posted behind‑the‑scenes photos and an expanded cast list, moves that prompted broad coverage and renewed public criticism from relatives of the 2018 Humboldt Broncos bus crash.
- Multiple family members, including Michelle Straschnitzki and Scott Thomas, say the series’ premise — a bus crash that shatters a small hockey team and a grieving wife who coaches the team — closely mirrors their loss and feels exploitative.
- Families say they were not consulted, describe the promotion as a painful ‘gut punch,’ and note they do not expect a legal duty to be consulted but expect the publicity to retraumatize survivors and relatives.
- Observers point to past films that handled real disasters with and without family involvement, suggesting the debate over The Sticks could shape how studios consult victims and how audiences respond to dramatizations of recent tragedies.