Damn Yankees

Play trailer

Damn Yankees

1958

1h 50m

Musical

Comedy

Play Trailer

Watchlist

Watchlist

Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

76%

Tomatometer

21 Reviews

69%

Popcornmeter

2,500+ Ratings

Joe Boyd, an aging Washington Senators fan, would sell his soul for the Senators to beat the New York Yankees and win the pennant. Enter Applegate (Ray Walston), who offers to turn Boyd into Joe Hardy (Tab Hunter), a powerful young baseball player, in exchange for his soul. When Boyd agrees, he becomes Hardy and leads the Senators on a winning streak. When he starts to miss his wife, though, and questions the deal, Applegate sends temptress Lola (Gwen Verdon) into the mix.

Watch on Fandango

Stream Now

TIME Magazine

Mar 16, 2011

As a cinemusical, Yankees manages to steal home by a wide margin.

Go to Full Review

Variety Staff

Variety

Mar 26, 2009

The Damn Yankees team, which ran the score high for three seasons in Broadway's legit ballpark, was reassembled to go to bat in this sparkling film version.

Go to Full Review

Tom Milne

Time Out

Jan 26, 2006

A musical lumbered with too much plot.

Go to Full Review

Matt Brunson

Film Frenzy

Mar 21, 2026

2.5/4

The mise-en-scenes are often found wanting (almost certainly from calls made by stage director Abbott rather than film director Donen).

Go to Full Review

Nick Rogers

Midwest Film Journal

Feb 25, 2026

3/5

An uncharacteristically restrained point-and-shoot that at least often points at greatness. It may not be a perfect game, but Ray Walston, Gwen Verdon and Bob Fosse make it a quality start.

Go to Full Review

Moira Walsh

The Catholic World

Aug 24, 2023

The baseball jokes are funny, the lyrics apt, the players expert and, most important, the mood fast and unpretentious The sexy dancing and demeanor of Gwen Verdon are in a class by themselves.

Go to Full Review

Read all reviews

eabate3 T

@RT96217111 Aug 9, 2026

If you like movie musicals this is a must-see. Gwen Vernon won 4 Tony awards including one for this show. This score is chock full of great songs.

See more

Scott R

@ScottR Dec 1, 2025

NYT 1000 movies list. A fun musical about a selling your soul for your baseball team to win the pennant. I loved that it was the DC Senators. I only wish they were still called that. Most of the wholesome entertainment was good, but it fell short with most of the musical numbers and dancing. The vixen witch was an odd character who was supposed to be enticing, but came off flat. It was harmless, so maybe that’s for the best? Saw on tubi.

See more

Alec B

@Alec97 Dec 14, 2023

Deserves more attention for it's unflinching weirdness. Yeah, Tab Hunter is kind of a drag but Gwen Verdon and Ray Walston more than compensate for him.

See more

Joel H

@786Joel Nov 3, 2023

Damn Yankees wasn't at all like I expected it to be. I honestly didn't know that the story was centered around baseball. I had supposed it was going to be something regarding the north versus the south. I also didn't expect the plot, songs, and dance numbers to be so goofy. However, it's an enjoyable kind of goofy. I was particularly amused by the choreography, which, of course, was done by the legendary Bob Fosse. This musical is a unique take on Faust, though this story doesn't take itself too seriously. It's a stage production on film, set in an innocent era, with a devilish sense of humor.

See more

Blobbo X

@Blobbo Jul 31, 2023

Why is classic? Not know. Is musical but music mostly bad. Not worth 2 hours of life. Better watching regular boring baseball.

See more

Rachel K

@RT17304933 Jul 10, 2022

My favorite song from this musical is Two Lost Souls because I'll be singing it at the talent show someday.

See more

Read all reviews

Read More

Read Less

WRITE A REVIEW

EDIT REVIEW

POST RATING

George Abbott

Director

Stanley Donen

Director

Tab Hunter

Joe Hardy

Gwen Verdon

Lola

Ray Walston

Mr. Applegate

Russ Brown

Benny Van Buren

Robin and the Seven Hoods

40%

69%

Robin and the Seven Hoods

Watchlist

Flirtation Walk

100%

26%

Flirtation Walk

Watchlist

Having a Wild Weekend

80%

48%

Having a Wild Weekend

Watchlist

High Society

88%

82%

High Society

Watchlist

G.I. Blues

0%

69%

G.I. Blues

Watchlist

Discover more movies and TV shows.

View More

View more photos

Synopsis

Joe Boyd, an aging Washington Senators fan, would sell his soul for the Senators to beat the New York Yankees and win the pennant. Enter Applegate (Ray Walston), who offers to turn Boyd into Joe Hardy (Tab Hunter), a powerful young baseball player, in exchange for his soul. When Boyd agrees, he becomes Hardy and leads the Senators on a winning streak. When he starts to miss his wife, though, and questions the deal, Applegate sends temptress Lola (Gwen Verdon) into the mix.

Director: George Abbott, Stanley Donen
Producer: George Abbott, Stanley Donen
Screenwriter: George Abbott
Production Co: Warner Brothers/Seven Arts
Genre: Musical, Comedy
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Sep 26, 1958, Original
Release Date (Streaming): May 31, 2019
Runtime: 1h 50m

Join The Newsletter

Join The Newsletter

Cookie Settings