Seabiscuit is one of the best-known horses ever to grace the track, and the thoroughbred has been represented in the media numerous times over the years, thanks to his incredible rise to glory.
It has been almost twenty years since the last major Seabiscuit film, though, so many horse racing fans may feel that the time is ripe for another one.
A modern retelling of the story could be a great option for a television series.
A Huge Market Out There for Horse Racing Content
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Netflix and other streaming services are constantly striving to come up with content that will appeal to a wide audience.
As these platforms battle with one another for supremacy, it is a race to identify the next big hit before others get there first.
It could be fair to assume that one of Netflix, Amazon, or HBO will bring out horse racing-related content in the future, simply because the sport is too popular to ignore.
In fact, in the UK, horse racing is the second-most popular spectator sport with 6 million people attending race events each year.
A vast number of others also follow the sport online, with various sites out there dedicated to providing UK horse racing results and information on temperature, trainer and age of the horse.
Fans aren’t just interested in races in the UK, but also internationally.
The fact that lovers of horse racing appreciate horses from all over the world highlights why a series about Seabiscuit could be a hit in any market.
What Were Seabiscuit’s Main Achievements?
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There have been various books and films based on Seabiscuit over the years, thanks to the horse’s amazing real-life story.
The light bay stallion was an unlikely champion and acted as a symbol of hope.
The true underdog tale began when the small horse only won a quarter of its first 40 races.
However, he went on to beat the Triple-Crown winner, War Admiral, in 1937.
He was then named American Horse of the Year the following year.
Seabiscuit went on to place at number 25 in the List of the Top 100 U.S Racehorses of the 20th Century, and his grandsire, Man o’ War, was named in the top spot.
TV Series Could Adapt Hillenbrand’s Book
Credit: Dreamworks Pictures
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The most famous book about Seabiscuit was Seabiscuit: An American Legend by Laura Hillenbrand.
The novel served as inspiration for Gary Ross’s 2003 big screen offering, simply entitled Seabiscuit.
There is plenty of embellishment on the true story in both the book and film, but this served to earn high praise for both.
Indeed, Ross’s title was nominated for seven awards at the 76th Academy Awards.
If anyone decides to create a television series based on the horse, they would be wise to borrow ideas from Hillenbrand’s book and Ross’s picture.
These have both already proven to be hugely popular, and audiences will be eager to see the themes portrayed in another medium.
Seabiscuit isn’t just a great story for fans of horse racing, it also appeals to people who love a story of an underdog’s rise to greatness.
Period pieces are currently popular on television, so that would work in the favour of a series as well.
It could be high time for a TV producer to come up with a new adaptation about the legendary horse.
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