Kyrie Irving Returns As Uncle Drew For New Pepsi® Generations Ad Ahead Of Lionsgate Feature Film Release

PURCHASE, N.Y., June 5, 2018

"Creating the Uncle Drew character with Pepsi and being a part of the creative process has been an incredible experience," said Kyrie Irving. "It is very humbling to see what this character has turned into and I'm excited to share what is next."

Pepsi first brought the fan-favorite Uncle Drew character to the court in May 2012 and has since transformed it into an episodic franchise featuring special guests and NBA talent of the past and present. Whether he is schooling "youngbloods" or teaching players how to "get buckets," Uncle Drew has captured the attention of more than 100 million YouTube views that have an appreciation for his old school love of the sport.

"Bringing Uncle Drew to the big screen has been such a pleasure for us," said Aziel Rivers, Director, Pepsi Marketing. "Since its inception, Uncle Drew has been a hit with our consumers and basketball fans alike, and we're excited to continue our relationship with the franchise and our close partner, Lionsgate, to share the Uncle Drew movie with our audiences."

"We're excited to have the opportunity to expand the Uncle Drew universe through film, and we can't wait for fans to enjoy the great storytelling, comedy and amazing basketball that our movie has to offer," said Paula Kupfer, Lionsgate Senior Vice President of Global Partnerships and Promotions. "We are thrilled to have Pepsi as a trusted partner in celebrating Uncle Drew on and off the big screen."

After a successful five years as a fan-favorite digital episodic series, originally conceived by Pepsi, Uncle Drew, will hit theaters on June 29. After draining his life savings to enter a team in the Rucker Classic street ball tournament in Harlem, Dax (Lil Rel Howery) is dealt a series of unfortunate setbacks, including losing his team to his longtime rival (Nick Kroll). Desperate to win the tournament and the cash prize, Dax stumbles upon the man, the myth, the legend Uncle Drew (NBA All-Star Kyrie Irving) and convinces him to return to the court one more time. The two men embark on a road trip to round up Drew's old basketball squad (Shaquille O'Neal, Chris Webber, Reggie Miller, Nate Robinson, and Lisa Leslie) and prove that a group of seniors can still win the big one.

Uncle Drew, which will be released nationwide on Lionsgate's Summit Entertainment label, is also produced by Temple Hill in association with Pepsi Productions.