October 10, 2023
In just under a month, Jason Kelce's moving documentary on Prime Video has become the streaming platform's most-watched documentary ever in the United States.
The film about the Eagles' offensive lineman chronicles his journey to Super Bowl LVII last season, which carried additional weight as he mulled retirement and anticipated the birth of his third daughter. Kelce also faced his younger brother Travis and the Kansas City Chiefs in the Super Bowl, putting a spotlight on his family's unique moment.
"Kelce" premiered Sept. 12 and had the biggest three first days of viewership ever recorded on Prime Video. The documentary debuted at No. 1 and has remained in the platform's top five movies through its first three weeks, Deadline reported.
Although Prime Video has not yet released viewership numbers for "Kelce," the documentary reportedly supplanted "Val" — the 2021 film about actor Val Kilmer — as the platform's top offering in the category.
Kelce, 35, and his wife, Kylie, appeared on NBC's "Today" last week to talk about the documentary.
"We tried to be as organic as possible, as authentic as possible — really let people into our lives, our heads, and kind of everything that happened through the course of an NFL season," Jason said.
Kylie said the documentary portrayed the thought process of an NFL veteran considering retirement and how the demands of an NFL season impacted the Kelce family.
"Sometimes it's just sheer exhaustion," Kylie said. "There have been a number of times we've explained that dad can't sit on the floor for that long, so there's approximately a 10-minute timer for on-the-floor games until Jason's butt has to make it to the couch, a soft surface."
Matt Newman, head of Prime Video Original sports content, said "Kelce" is the "perfect example" of what the streamer strives for in a documentary.
"It’s as much a story of family, parenting, and brotherhood as it is about football," Newman said.
The Kelce brothers have remained in the spotlight this season amid rumors that Travis is dating Taylor Swift, who has attended two Chiefs games this year. After Jason played coy about the subject in an interview on SportsRadio 94WIP, Travis pleaded with the media to stop asking his brother about his romantic life.
The Eagles' Super Bowl loss to the Chiefs played a role in inspiring Kelce to return for his 13th season with the team. The Eagles are off to another 5-0 start, just like last season.
