The Hawk Review
Director: Shiri Appleby, David Gordon Green, Chris Henchy, and Jonathan Watson
Date Created: 2026-07-16 19:39
2.5
The Hawk Review: Directed by Shiri Appleby, David Gordon Green, Chris Henchy, and Jonathan Watson, The Netflix sports comedy stars Will Ferrell in the lead as legendary golfer Lonnie Hawkins. Joining him are Molly Shannon, Jimmy Tatro, Fortune Feimster, David Hornsby, Katelyn Tarver, Gabriel Hogan, Luke Wilson and others. The show is spread across ten episodes of roughly 30 minutes each.
The Hawk Review
Netflix series The Hawk revolves around Lonnie Hawkins, who was once a top golf player now seemingly past his prime. Although everyone around him thinks retirement would be the best option for him, Lonnie is unwilling to give up on his career. With hopes of achieving his last shot at success, he re-joins the circuit only to find out that he is not competing against old rivals but also his son, Lance. With old family feuds surfacing and egos clashing, the series questions whether it is too late for a man to seek redemption.
What I was expecting going into Netflix’s The Hawk was a drama that was not afraid to be completely ridiculous. What the series does do is deliver just that, except there is little development from that. Lonnie Hawkins receives nothing more than the same ridiculous and over-exaggerated character that Will Ferrell plays for everything he’s worth. There are times when I was laughing, but it just felt repetitive.
Lonnie is a character who thinks that everything about the world revolves around him, and his pride is what drives all the humour in the show. He can be shown making unnecessary trouble at tournaments, publicly embarrassing himself, or failing to acknowledge the fact that age has finally gotten to him. It seems that the creators of the show always try to put him in positions where they can make fun of his arrogant self. This works in some cases since Ferrell clearly knows how to portray an ignorant and narcissistic character without being completely irritating. But the writers continue to use the same old joke on him rather than coming up with new ideas about his personality.
The feud between the father and son was supposed to be the emotional crux of the entire series, and every time the show turns to focus on this relationship, The Hawk becomes a lot more interesting. Lance is not just any other obstacle that gets in the way of Lonnie. Years of being raised around a self-centred father have turned him into a frustrated, emotionally distant man. This feud at the golf course extends to even deeper feelings off the golf course, and it’s nice to see that the show sometimes takes time to explore these feelings. Too bad it’s always ruined by some exaggeration.
One of the things that I really liked about this show is the fact that Lonnie is truly good at golf. Many comedies about sports have the main character win due to sheer luck or coincidence, but in this case, Lonnie’s reputation seems well-deserved. Although at times his self-confidence may be close to being delusional, he constantly reminds us why he was once thought of as one of the best golfers. This allows for the tournament sequences to become somewhat entertaining because you never know if the experience will be able to compensate for the age and the baggage.
Will Ferrell is definitely the main reason why the The Hawk series stays watchable. He’s in his element, and although the humour never seems very original, he always goes all out when he’s being ridiculous. It doesn’t matter whether he’s delivering a ludicrous speech, or is making some bad choices or having to face the aftermath of what he has done, Will Ferrell always brings it. However, I could not get over the feeling that I had already seen him deliver this exact performance before, but with a golf club instead of a car or ice skates instead of a car.
Supporting actors make sure that there is as much life as possible around them. For example, Jimmy Tatro offers Lance sufficient vulnerabilities to make the whole father-son sub-plot realistic. Moreover, Molly Shannon and Will Ferrell have chemistry when playing spouses; their quarrels often become more interesting than humorous due to the years of frustration and not because of sitcom-style drama. However, Fortune Feimster brings enough fun into some scenes just with her appearance. On the other hand, many secondary characters look like they are here just for the sake of responding to the next tantrum of Lonnie.
The major problem I have with Netflix’s The Hawk is in the show’s writing. Way too many of the show’s gags depend on being excessively loud, crude, or dragged out until it isn’t funny anymore. Some of the show’s comedic banter has some humorous setups, but runs for too long until all the humour is drained away. There is also a problem with deciding if the viewer is supposed to laugh at Lonnie or be pulling for him. Even though he is constantly being selfish, sometimes he deserves sympathy in situations where he doesn’t get it.
I also wish the series had used golf more creatively. Being the key part that it is, I thought that there could be some more satirical commentary regarding the professional game of golf or golf in general. On the contrary, the game of golf acts merely as the setting against which Lonnie creates his humorous mischief.
Netflix The Hawk Review: Summing Up
Overall, there are plenty of funny scenes in this 2026 The Hawk series, but it fails to become funny or touching enough, despite its apparent attempts to do so. Will Ferrell still has his charm, and the conflict between Lonnie and Lance helps the series get occasional touches of some seriousness. Nevertheless, repetitive jokes, weak pace and unstable development of the main character prevent this show from turning into a good sports comedy. It might suit those who like films and shows featuring Will Ferrell in the traditional way, but I find the series only average entertainment that does not achieve its best results.
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