Skydance surprisingly pulls the plug on Matthew McConaughey’s Dallas Sting film

Just six weeks before cameras were about to start rolling on Skydance’s Dallas Sting starring Matthew McConaughey, the production has been abruptly shut down.

The project is based on the true story of a Dallas girls soccer team dubbed the Dallas Sting, who travelled to China in 1984 and beat some of the best teams from around the world.

Now the project has been fully scrapped, according to Deadline, after Skydance was made aware of allegations surrounding the true story the project was based on… which were apparently serious enough to warrant a full production shut-down.

No details about the actual allegations put forth were given, though Skydance and the producers did investigate on their own and found the allegations serious enough to scrap the production.

The film was to be based on the true story of coach Bill Kinder (McConaughey), who lead a group of Dallas-area high school girls called the Dallas Sting to victory on an unprecedented international stage.

The story is set in 1984, when President Ronald Reagan was trying to improve relations with China.

Allegations: No details about the actual allegations put forth were given, though Skydance and the producers did investigate on their own and found the allegations serious enough to scrap the production

Coach: The film was to be based on the true story of coach Bill Kinder (McConaughey), who lead a group of Dallas-area high school girls called the Dallas Sting to victory on an unprecedented international stage

China had invited the United States to send their national women’s soccer team to participate in the first ever FIFA world championship tournament… though at the time, there was no official U.S. National Women’s Soccer team.

The Dallas Sting – a team formed in the mid-1970s and named after the Robert Redford and Paul Newman movie – were selected to represent their country.

Kinder had no prior coaching experience before forming the team in the 1970s and he had to personally put over $85,000 on his credit cards to pay for the tickets to China for his team to play.

No experience: Kinder had no prior coaching experience before forming the team in the 1970s and he had to personally put over $85,000 on his credit cards to pay for the tickets to China for his team to play

While the team was expected to lose quite badly, they defeated teams from Australia, Japan, China and Italy in the championship game to win the tournament.

They were the first American team – male or female – to win an international soccer tournament, with the official US Women’s National Soccer Team formed just a few years after the Dallas Sting’s dominant performance.

Skydance and the producers are said to be very disappointed by the new developments and the shut-down since they think this is a story worth telling.

Disappointed: Skydance and the producers are said to be very disappointed by the new developments and the shut-down since they think this is a story worth telling

McConaughey was attached to star as Bill Kinder alongside Kaitlin Dever, who was set to play his daughter.

Kari Skogland (The Falcon and the Winter Soldier) was set to direct from a script by GLOW creators Liz Flahive and Carly Mensch.

Skydance and Berlanti Schachter Productions were producing and developing the project. 

Daughter: McConaughey was attached to star as Bill Kinder alongside Kaitlin Dever, who was set to play his daughter