Detroit Lions to host Barry Sanders doc premiere for season ticket holders at Fox Theatre
The Detroit Lions will host a private premiere of the new documentary "Bye Bye Barry," which focuses on Barry Sanders' sudden decision to retire in 1999, on Friday at the Fox Theatre in downtown Detroit.
The event will be invite-only for a handful of season ticket holders and other select groups, but those who are able to attend will be surrounded by major Lions figures. Sanders himself is set to be in attendance, as well as Lions head coach Dan Campbell, quarterback Jared Goff, former Lions linebacker and front-office member Chris Spielman, and running back Jahmyr Gibbs.
The documentary was first announced back in September and promised to finally explain his shocking retirement as he was on the verge of passing Walter Payton's all-time rushing record.
Sanders called the new doc "the definitive movie on my life," back when it was teased in September.
Season ticket holders who are invited to the event can start being admitted at 6:30 p.m. and the showing will begin at 7:30 p.m.
BIG YEAR FOR BARRY: Barry Sanders statue shows Detroit Lions great in middle of one of his iconic runs
The movie is being presented by Amazon Video Sports and is a production of NFL Films.
Earlier this football season, the Lions unveiled a new statue of Sanders outside of Ford Field during an emotional ceremony.
“You’d walk across that Silverdome parking lot in cold and wintery weather but everybody always had a smile...That day they’d see Barry Sanders do something that they’d never seen before,” said Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan at the unveiling. “Barry Sanders, on and off the field, always made Detroit proud.”
Sanders played in 153 games with the Lions from 1988-1999 and rushed for an incredible 15,269 yards while leading the NFL in rushing four times.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Lions to host premiere of 'Bye Bye Barry' doc at Fox Theatre
