Any Given Sunday - Cast

Cast

Al Pacino as Tony D'Amato – The Head Coach of the Miami Sharks. Having held his position for decades and given much autonomy by the elder Pagniacci, "Tony D" is widely respected for leading his men to great successes, including two Pantheon Cups, the Championship for the film's professional football league. He gave most of his time to the team, and it led him to lose touch with and become estranged from his wife and children. However, despite his legacy, D'Amato's traditional and old-fashioned methods have come under fire for poor results during his last seasons, including missing the playoffs several times. During the last few years, being bitter that he was never promoted to general manager, he also resents the hands-on approach or "interference" of Christina Pagniacci, who succeeded her father Arturo as team owner. The character was inspired by Tom Landry who was the longtime coach of the Dallas Cowboys. His last name comes from legendary boxing trainer Constantine "Cus" D'Amato.

Cameron Diaz as Christina Pagniacci – The Owner and General Manager of the Miami Sharks who inherited the team from her father Arturo, she is young and attractive and boasts a Cornell MBA. Given the team's poor results in the last few years, which she attributes to Coach D'Amato's "old-school methods", she attempts to take a more hands-on approach to the team, including bringing in an innovative Offensive Coordinator Nick Crozier. She has hinted several times that D'Amato will not return after his contract expires, adding to his distractions. She also threatens several times to move the franchise if the city refuses to build a new stadium, causing a confrontation with the AFFA Commissioner and the Mayor of Miami. Her character is based upon Jerry Jones and Georgia Frontiere.

Dennis Quaid as Jack "Cap" Rooney – The starting quarterback & Captain of the Miami Sharks. Seen like a son to Coach D'Amato, the two have been credited with the team's greatest on-field successes. However, Rooney is now an aging veteran who is losing motivation and faces conflicts with team personnel. New owner Christina Pagniacci wants to dump him, although he remains the favorite of D'Amato who insists that Rooney's departure would never be ceremonial. Relations have soured between Rooney and his wife Cindy (Lauren Holly) who consistently goads him on without sympathy to his physical or mental situation, mercilessly browbeating him when he even mentions retiring (it is implied that Cindy married Jack only because he was a well-paid athlete and, she has grown accustomed to their lifestyle and her position as Quarterback's Wife and is unwilling to lose the social standing). With the team in a mid-season slump, he is injured during a game and is replaced but is determined to make a comeback. His perseverance pays off as he recovers in time for the first round of the playoffs to earn the start, where in he plays well until suffering a hard hit while scoring a touchdown before halftime.

James Woods as Dr. Harvey Mandrake – The team physician for the Miami Sharks. He is a crooked Doctor who risks the injury of players to enable the team to have a better shot at winning, often at the direction of Christina Pagniacci. He is later fired after his practices are discovered by the team internist.

Jamie Foxx as "Steamin" Willie Beamen – The third-string quarterback for the Miami Sharks who takes over as starter after an injury to Rooney, and then an injury to the backup quarterback. Though surprisingly successful, Beamen causes tension among staff and teammates, as he frequently changes the plays the Coach calls, or just calls his own. He begins a singing career and even asks owner Christina Pagniacci for a date when she enters a postgame locker room full of mostly naked players. Beamen later matures, listens to his coaches and teammates, and is inspired by "Cap" Rooney's gutsy performance in the Sharks' first playoff game.

LL Cool J as Julian "J-Man" Washington – The starting running back for the Miami Sharks. He is a very good back but becomes increasingly angry at Beamen for his cockiness and tendencies to call plays away from him. He is motivated by incentive clauses in his contract, and Coach D'Amato refers to him as a "merc" (mercenary) "who will be gone before next season."

Lawrence Taylor as Luther "Shark" Lavay – The Captain of the Miami Sharks' defense. Mandrake has concealed that "Shark" is suffering from a previous injury, a broken neck that did not heal properly. If he suffers a serious hit again, he may be killed or permanently disabled. The team's intern Doctor informs him and D'Amato of the situation, and "Shark" says he will lose over a million dollars if he does not make his incentive stats if he retires as the intern doctor suggests. He also has an earlier confrontation with Willie Beamen over the role of offense vs. defense in football (which culminates with him cutting Beamen's Chevrolet Suburban in half with a circular saw during a party when fed up with Beamen's attitude). He later gives the younger player a quiet but impassioned speech about playing with 100% emotion. While making a hit in the playoff game against the Knights that turned over the ball on downs, Shark gets knocked unconscious. But after a few seconds, wakes up and is hauled off on a stretcher satisfied that he made his million dollar incentive. It is unclear whether he recovered full, or became confined to a wheelchair, but he exhibits use of his arms.

Jim Brown as Montezuma Monroe – The Defensive Co-ordinator of the Miami Sharks. He is vocal and brings high intensity to the defense and to the rest of the team in general. A longtime friend of Tony D'Amato's, the Coach personally confides in Montezuma several times. Monroe states at one point he would like to return to high school coaching where the game is "pure".

Aaron Eckhart as Nick Crozier – The Offensive Co-ordinator of the Miami Sharks. Nick is an offensive guru brought in from Minnesota by Christina Pagniacci. Young and tech-savvy (making use of a laptop computer while calling plays), he is highly critical of Tony's old fashioned offensive play calling, Willie's changing the plays in the huddle and Julian's playing for contract incentives. Despite the tension between himself and Head Coach D'Amato, the latter recognizes Crozier's talent, and he is named D'Amato's successor, after D'Amato departs to lead an expansion franchise in New Mexico.

Matthew Modine as Dr. Oliver "Ollie" Powers – The intern Doctor for the team. He discovers Harvey covering for players who are suffering from near-career-ending injuries but are overdosing on painkillers, steroids and hormones to cover the pain. He faces his own dilemma in the need to relieve the players' pain vs. prescribing too much medication at the insistence of the addicted players.

John C. McGinley as Jack Rose – An abrasive and prominent sports reporter with his own cable show, who displays an incredible distaste for all things D'Amato. This leads to D'Amato physically assaulting Rose near the end of the regular season, but no charges are pressed after D'Amato makes a public apology. Rose is a thinly disguised impression of both Jim Rome and Skip Bayless.