Ron Howard surprises fans for Thirteen Lives Amazon Prime

Back in 2018, a global audience watched with bated breath the saga of a boys’ football team who had become lost and trapped in a flooded cave in Thailand—and were ultimately saved during a harrowing rescue mission.

Oscar-winning director Ron Howard has brought their story to the screen in his latest film, “Thirteen Lives,” which begins streaming today on Amazon Prime Video. To promote the movie’s release, Howard and the Prime Video marketing team concocted a surprise for some of the people who had been supporting the football players even before their tale hit Hollywood. 

A new video released today shows an audience of everyday folks assembled at a movie theater in London, for reasons unknown to them. Howard then appears on the screen with a special message. He calls them out one by one, noting what they had posted on social media back in 2018, praying and wishing the best for the boys and their rescuers. He also reveals that some of the real heroes from the mission, including British diver Richard Stanton and groundwater expert Thanet Natisri, are sitting among them. 

“In July 2018, as different as we might seem, we all wished for the same thing—to save thirteen lives,” he says. “That’s why we made this film. That’s why you are here today, and that’s why you are my dream audience.”