{"id":2356981,"date":"2026-04-03T13:57:54","date_gmt":"2026-04-03T13:57:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/?p=2356981"},"modified":"2026-04-03T13:57:54","modified_gmt":"2026-04-03T13:57:54","slug":"ben-stiller-explains-why-bowling-has-a-warm-place-in-my-heart-as-he-produces-new-doc-about-the-sport-exclusive","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/ben-stiller-explains-why-bowling-has-a-warm-place-in-my-heart-as-he-produces-new-doc-about-the-sport-exclusive\/","title":{"rendered":"Ben Stiller Explains Why Bowling Has a \u2018Warm Place in My Heart\u2019 as He Produces New Doc About the Sport (Exclusive)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><\/p>\n<div data-article-body=\"true\">\n<h3 class=\"mb-4 text-lg font-bold\">NEED TO KNOW<\/h3>\n<ul class=\"mb-4\">\n<li class=\"ml-4 list-disc\">\n<div class=\"\">\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Ben Stiller executive-produced the new HBO Original Documentary Series <em>Born to Bowl<\/em>, which follows five bowlers on the Professional Bowlers Association (PBA) Tour<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"ml-4 list-disc\">\n<div class=\"\">\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Although he admits he&#8217;s not the best bowler, Stiller tells PEOPLE the sport has a special place in his heart<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"ml-4 list-disc\">\n<div class=\"\">\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The series airs weekly on HBO, with its final episode dropping April 13 at 9 p.m. ET<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\"><a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/people.com\/tag\/ben-stiller\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:Ben Stiller;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;context_link&quot;,&quot;yModuleName&quot;:&quot;content-canvas&quot;,&quot;yLinkText&quot;:&quot;Ben Stiller&quot;}\" class=\"link \">Ben Stiller<\/a> is a successful actor, producer and director, but when it comes to bowling, he could use a little more practice.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">\u201cI&#8217;ve had to bowl in public a couple times, the last time being at the premiere for this show [<em>Born to Bowl<\/em>] where the guys asked me if I would do the ceremonial first ball and I gutterballed it&#8230; of course,\u201d Stiller tells PEOPLE of the HBO Original Documentary Series <em>Born to Bowl<\/em>, which he executive-produced.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Still, the sport, which is the subject of the five-part series that premiered on March 16, served as an important part of the multi-hyphenate\u2019s career.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"relative mb-4\">\n<div class=\"relative\"><\/div><figcaption class=\"relative text-sm mt-1 pr-2.5\">\n<p><i>The &#8216;Born to Bowl&#8217; poster.<br \/>Credit: HBO<\/i><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">\u201cThe first short film I made that I ended up getting on <em>Saturday Night Live<\/em> when I was starting out was a takeoff on <em>The Color of Money<\/em>, the Martin Scorsese and Tom Cruise movie about pool that was a sequel to <em>The Hustler <\/em>that I made with my friends about bowling,\u201d he says. \u201cSo, I have a real warm place in my heart for bowling.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Stiller sold his film <em>The Hustler of Money <\/em>to <em>SNL<\/em> before joining the cast for a <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/people.com\/ben-stiller-left-snl-after-four-episodes-i-couldnt-do-well-there-8774395\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:four-episode-long stint in 1989.\u00a0;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;context_link&quot;,&quot;yModuleName&quot;:&quot;content-canvas&quot;,&quot;yLinkText&quot;:&quot;four-episode-long stint in 1989.&amp;nbsp&quot;}\" class=\"link \">four-episode-long stint in 1989.\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">More than three decades later, Stiller revisits the sport with the docuseries that follows five bowlers on the Professional Bowlers Association (PBA) Tour, revealing the realities of life on the road.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">\u201cThese guys who are the best in the world \u2014 the best in the U.S. \u2014 and what the reality of their lives is, which is pretty much 180 degrees from the reality of these other people who are at the top of their sport,\u201d Stiller says of the players, who win $100,000 at the PBA Championship versus the more than $4 million purse at professional golf&#8217;s Masters Tournament. \u201cIt was a little bit shocking to me that these guys have to do what they have to do just to survive on the bowling tour.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure class=\"relative mb-4\">\n<div class=\"relative\"><img alt=\"Ben Stiller at the 'Born to Bowl' premiere.Credit: Marion Curtis \/ StarPix for HBO\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"320\" height=\"480\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"1\" class=\"rounded-lg\" style=\"color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/s.yimg.com\/ny\/api\/res\/1.2\/Cw6AE6O66ENQm7ZZ7ii7xw--\/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTY0MDtoPTk2MDtjZj13ZWJw\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/people_218\/3241fac08b1caafa17c484f4459b485d\"\/><\/div><figcaption class=\"relative text-sm mt-1 pr-2.5\">\n<p><i>Ben Stiller at the &#8216;Born to Bowl&#8217; premiere.<br \/>Credit: Marion Curtis \/ StarPix for HBO<\/i><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Kyle Troup, a 12-time PBA Champion, says he hopes the series helps bring more attention to the sport.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">\u201cI&#8217;ve been grinding for a long time. We have our monthly salaries from our sponsors and stuff that can make a nice living. But at the end of the day, we&#8217;re bowling week-in and week-out for $30,000 or $100,000 for a major,\u201d Troup tells PEOPLE.\u00a0 \u201cSo, I think that&#8217;s going to help the documentary and just the show itself to show what we&#8217;re going through for what we can win and then the people that we are and the hearts that we have. And I think that&#8217;s just going to make people fall in love with the documentary and bowling even more.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Bowling has been a part of Troup\u2019s life since he was a kid. Known as the \u201cPro with the Fro\u201d due to his signature hairstyle, Troup grew up watching his father Guppy Troup bowl in competitions around the country. In 2026, Guppy became a member of the PBA Hall of Fame.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">\u201cIt&#8217;s fun,\u201d Troup says of the sport. \u201cHeck, I mean, you get to have some pizza, have some good bowling alley food, go bowl, get competitive with your family and obviously for my family, it was more than competitive, it was my dad&#8217;s job\u2026. but I feel like it&#8217;s just such an easy, accessible sport.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure class=\"relative mb-4\">\n<div class=\"relative\"><img alt=\"Kyle Troup in 'Born to Bowl'Credit: HBO\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"960\" height=\"640\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"1\" class=\"rounded-lg\" style=\"color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/s.yimg.com\/ny\/api\/res\/1.2\/koqYuUhyi4KgzwYZVpM8nQ--\/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTY0MDtjZj13ZWJw\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/people_218\/5e8f0a092c41b4385d31dd267661b0ce\"\/><button aria-label=\"View larger image\" class=\"group absolute bottom-0 size-full\" data-ylk=\"elm:expand;itc:1;sec:image-lightbox;slk:lightbox-open;\"><span class=\"absolute bottom-3 right-3 rounded-full bg-white p-3 opacity-100 shadow-elevation-3 transition-opacity duration-300 group-hover:block group-hover:opacity-100 md:p-[17px] lg:bottom-6 lg:right-6 lg:bg-white\/90 lg:p-5 lg:opacity-0 lg:shadow-none\"><svg viewbox=\"0 0 22 22\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"size-4 lg:size-6\" width=\"22\" height=\"22\"><path d=\"M12.372.92c0-.506.41-.916.915-.916L21 0l-.004 7.712a.917.917 0 0 1-1.832 0V3.183l-6.827 6.828-1.349-1.348 6.828-6.828h-4.529a.915.915 0 0 1-.915-.915M1.835 17.816l6.828-6.828 1.349 1.349-6.829 6.827h4.529a.915.915 0 0 1 0 1.831L0 21l.004-7.713a.916.916 0 0 1 1.831 0z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/button><dialog aria-label=\"Modal Dialog\" aria-modal=\"true\" class=\"fixed bottom-0 left-0 right-0 top-0 z-4 size-full max-h-none max-w-none bg-white hidden\"\/><\/div><figcaption class=\"relative text-sm mt-1 pr-2.5\">\n<p><i>Kyle Troup in &#8216;Born to Bowl&#8217;<br \/>Credit: HBO<\/i><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Stiller acknowledges that the accessibility of bowling might be why some Americans take the sport \u201cfor granted a little.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">\u201cSo it&#8217;s nice to see these guys getting the attention that they deserve and the respect that they deserve,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">\u201cWe all are trying to do our thing in life and you&#8217;re not always going to get the attention or the respect or maybe how you might think that people should react to something you&#8217;re doing,\u201d Stiller adds.\u00a0 \u201cBut these guys, they do it because they love the sport, they&#8217;re dedicated to it, and they want to be the best\u2026. I support giving them their flowers, as they say.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\"><em>Born to Bowl<\/em> airs weekly on HBO, with the final two episodes airing April 6 and April 13 at 9 p.m. ET.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Read the original article on <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/people.com\/ben-stiller-executive-produced-docuseries-bowling-exclusive-11941913\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:People;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;context_link&quot;,&quot;yModuleName&quot;:&quot;content-canvas&quot;,&quot;yLinkText&quot;:&quot;People&quot;}\" class=\"link \">People<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><em> \u2018 The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n<p><em> \u2018 Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.yahoo.com \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>NEED TO KNOW Ben Stiller executive-produced the new HBO Original Documentary Series Born to Bowl, which follows five bowlers on the Professional Bowlers Association (PBA) Tour Although he admits he&#8217;s not the best bowler, Stiller tells PEOPLE the sport has a special place in his heart The series airs weekly on HBO, with its final [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2356982,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[25172],"tags":[65245,21917,457602,436539,347167],"class_list":["post-2356981","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-entertainment","tag-ben-stiller","tag-hbo","tag-kyle-troup","tag-pba","tag-professional-bowlers-association"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Ben-Stiller-Explains-Why-Bowling-Has-a-\u2018Warm-Place-in.jpeg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2356981","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2356981"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2356981\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2356983,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2356981\/revisions\/2356983"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2356982"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2356981"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2356981"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2356981"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}