Retired NFL legend Marshawn Lynch’s latest acting venture is in honor of his sister.
The 2013 Super Bowl champion graces the big screen in the newly-released “Bottoms,” an LGBTQ+ coming-of-age film, starring Ayo Edebiri and Rachel Sennott, about teen girls who launch an after-school feminist fight club.
The film, which director Emma Seligman said she co-wrote with Sennott to represent queer stories in a light-hearted comedy, instantly reminded Lynch of his sister, Marreesha Sapp-Lynch, who came out as lesbian while in high school, People reported.
“From the beginning when he read the script, he said that I came to mind,” Sapp-Lynch told the outlet, recalling her brother asking her advice whether or not he should take on the role.
“I was like, ‘Most definitely you should do it,’” she said. “I just told him, ‘It’ll get you to understand, get more knowledge about the lesbian community.’”
Lynch, 37, stars as Mr. G, a lovably aloof teacher who learns more about queer allyship as the supervisor for the after-school club launched by PJ (Sennott) and Josie (Edebiri).
The 34-year-old Sapp-Lynch opened up about her experience coming out to her family years ago. Her mother, Delisa, instantly embraced her queerness, though it took time for brothers David, Marshawn and Davonte to process the news.
“They were understanding, but they didn’t understand,” Sapp-Lynch told People. “Marshawn had a lot of questions and was thinking it was his fault: ‘What did I do?’ Because growing up he would always say I couldn’t have a boyfriend, ‘You can’t talk to boys.’ We’d go to a party and he’d be asking everybody, ‘Did you dance with my sister?’ But I wasn’t attracted to boys, so I didn’t dance with them!”
In the years since, Marshawn has grown supportive and proud of his sister’s queerness, Sapp-Lynch explained. The former Seahawks running back was…
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