Will Ferrell’s ‘The Hawk’ Brings His First Television Comedy to Netflix With a PGA Tour Partnership

Will Ferrell is stepping away from the big screen sports comedies that built his career and moving into television for the first time as a creator and star. His new Netflix series, ‘The Hawk,’ follows a fictional golf legend chasing one final chance at glory, and it arrives with a level of institutional access that few sports comedies have managed to secure.

The show has been years in the making, shifting titles and creative partners before finally landing on its current form. With a premiere date now set and a cast full of familiar comedic names, here is what audiences need to know before pressing play.

The Hawk Release Date and Episode Count

‘The Hawk’ is scheduled to premiere on Netflix on July 16, 2026, with all ten episodes dropping at once rather than on a weekly schedule. Netflix officially confirmed that all 10 episodes of ‘The Hawk’ would premiere worldwide on that date, with the announcement unveiled during Netflix’s Upfront presentation on May 13.

The full season structure means viewers do not have to wait for new installments to unlock. The series runs 10 episodes of approximately 30 minutes each, all dropping simultaneously on July 16.

Timing wise, international viewers should note the release window carefully. All 10 episodes of ‘The Hawk’ hit Netflix simultaneously at midnight Pacific Time on July 16, meaning viewers in the Eastern United States will be able to binge the full season starting at 3 AM ET on Thursday.

The project itself took an unusually long path to the screen. Netflix’s mysterious untitled golf comedy starring Will Ferrell lived in development limbo for years, sparking curiosity every time a casting update surfaced. It was originally announced in April 2023 as a comedy series about a professional golfer who becomes the face of a controversial new league competing with the PGA Tour, before the series was given the title ‘Golf’ in 2024 and later evolved into its current form.

The Hawk Plot and Golf Grand Slam Premise

At the center of the story is Lonnie “The Hawk” Hawkins, a fictional golfer trying to recapture the magic of his prime. Lonnie Hawkins, 2004’s number one golfer, struggles on the back nine of his career to recapture his magic, and his body says retire, but his heart says he’s not done yet.

His family has largely accepted that his best days are behind him, but Lonnie has not. His ex-wife and his son Lance, golf’s new golden boy, know he’s through, but with one more major to win to complete golf’s Grand Slam, Lonnie refuses to believe he’s anything other than one stroke away from the greatest comeback in golf history.

The Career Grand Slam framing gives the show a specific, tangible goal rather than a vague comeback arc. The Career Grand Slam, winning all four modern professional majors across a career, is treated as a real dramatic device rather than a loose plot excuse.

Ferrell has spoken about what drew him to the golf world as a setting for comedy in the first place. He said he has always been fascinated with the world of golf, calling it a tortured existence for the men and women who stand over a ball for hours taking shots and have to be perfect, which he thought must drive people crazy. That comment came through Reuters, which spoke with Ferrell directly about the production.

The Hawk Cast Led By Will Ferrell and Molly Shannon

Ferrell leads the ensemble as Lonnie, but the supporting cast is stacked with comedy veterans. The full cast around Ferrell includes Molly Shannon as Stacy, Lonnie’s foul mouthed ex wife, Jimmy Tatro as Lance, Lonnie’s son who has become golf’s next star, Fortune Feimster as Sam, Lonnie’s new caddie, Luke Wilson as Golden Fisk, a polished rival professional who has beaten Lonnie twice before, and Chris Parnell as Anton, a straight laced PGA Tour board member.

Rounding out the principal players, Katelyn Tarver plays Natalie, Lance’s influencer fiancée, and David Hornsby and Gabriel Hogan appear in supporting roles.

Several cast members previously worked together on ‘Saturday Night Live,’ and Ferrell has described that shared history as part of what made the shoot feel different from his film work. He recalled that some of the more fun parts were just sitting around the monitor with Molly Shannon and Chris Parnell reading old ‘Saturday Night Live’ stories, and said there was a unique energy on set compared with other projects because the series was created alongside longtime friends.

Behind the camera, Ferrell shares creative duties with two close collaborators. The series was created by Will Ferrell, Harper Steele and Chris Henchy. Ferrell, Jessica Elbaum and Alix Taylor executive produce for Gloria Sanchez Productions, Rian Johnson, Ram Bergman and Nena Rodrigue are executive producers for T-Street, and Chris Henchy, Harper Steele, David Gordon Green and Andrew Guest also serve as executive producers.

The PGA Tour Partnership Behind The Hawk

What separates ‘The Hawk’ from most sports comedies is that the institution it satirizes actually cooperated with the production. The PGA Tour is listed as an official partner on the production, granting Ferrell’s production companies access to real tournaments, including visible scenes at the Waste Management Phoenix Open.

That access shapes the tone of the marketing as much as the show itself. The trailer, released by Netflix and the PGA, is set to the tune of an 80s glam rock theme song and shows Ferrell as Lonnie Hawkins in a golf match against his rising star son.

Netflix has also leaned into a promotional tour to build buzz ahead of the premiere. The show has been promoting itself with a tour bus making stops on the East Coast, offering games, prizes and photo opportunities for fans, with appearances by Ferrell himself at several stops.

This marks a notable return to television for Ferrell, who has spent most of the past two decades working in film. ‘The Hawk’ marks the first television series Ferrell has starred in since 2021, when he played an anxious psychiatric patient in Apple TV’s ‘The Shrink Next Door.’ It also represents Ferrell’s television debut as both creator and star of a scripted comedy, following two decades of sports satire films including ‘Talladega Nights,’ ‘Blades of Glory,’ ‘Semi-Pro’ and ‘Kicking & Screaming.’

With Lonnie Hawkins now teeing off for one last major, viewers who have followed Ferrell’s run of sports comedies will have plenty to compare, and those hoping his fictional golfer actually completes the Grand Slam should share their predictions once the season lands.