The DALLAS Cowboys cheerleaders are getting ready to take on the world.
The NFL’s most iconic dance team appears on your TV screen in Netflix’s new documentary, America’s Sweethearts.
Netflix cameras had exclusive behind-the-scenes access to the troops during the 2023 season.
It was a rollercoaster campaign on the field for the Cowboys, who saw their Super Bowl drought extend to 29 years.
America’s Sweethearts chronicles the lives of past and present cheerleaders on the team, including rookies, veterans, and retired dancers.
“There are certain people you feel obligated to focus on,” director Greg Whiteley explained, via Netflix.
READ MORE ABOUT DALLAS COWBOYS
“You have to trust that instinct and be open to where you want their story to go.
“We were fully prepared to continue filming with someone who wasn’t part of the crew.”
Hundreds of dancers sign up for a spot on the team every year, with the show following several newcomers on their cheerleading journey.
One of them is Charly Barby, a trained ballerina who graduated from Arizona State shortly before filming began.
Most read in American football
While Bollywood dancer Anisha Kay – an orthodontist in the real world – turned heads with a stunning audition tape.
“If I know I have five minutes between patients, I try to do one or two full routines. It’s difficult, but it’s worth it,” said Anisha.
Newcomer Kelly Villares is another hopeful newcomer and says she has dreamed of becoming a Dallas cheerleader her entire life.
“I just didn’t think it was in the cards for me considering I live in New Jersey,” Kelly revealed.
“I want to make my parents proud, because they know how much I want this and they have sacrificed a lot.
“I just want to show them what I did, [and say] You didn’t sacrifice all of this for nothing.”
The show also follows several DCC veterans as they investigate what it means to become a cheerleader in the modern NFL.
Fifth-year dancer Kelcey Wetterberg balances the role with her high-pressure full-time job as a pediatric nurse.
“You learn to speed up your meals when you’re busy like me, 18 hours a day. DCC is more of a part-time job,” she said. Netflix.
“Many of us work full time and go to DCC in the evenings, so it can be very tiring.
“But there are moments here that are so special that I will cherish them for the rest of my life.”
Fourth-year dancer Victoria Kalina has family ties to the organization, with her mother, Tina, a cheerleader in Dallas during the 1980s.
“I get some comments saying you guys are too close, that’s not healthy,” says Victoria about her relationship with her mother.
“But I wouldn’t have it any other way. She is my rock, my person, my biggest supporter of all time.”
Elsewhere in the squad there is another family connection, with debutant Anna Kate Sundvold replacing her sister Caroline after she retired through injury.
“We had some arguments, but for the most part it was a blessing for me that as I was leaving DCC, she was arriving,” Caroline explained.
“It kind of eased the blow a little bit, so I didn’t feel so isolated from everything I’ve experienced over the last five years.”
“The kind of access and creative freedom we need to do the kind of work we want isn’t easy to come by — especially when we’re dealing with a brand as big as the Dallas Cowboys,” Whiteley continued ahead of the show’s June debut. 20.
“To their infinite credit, the Cowboys offered unrestricted access during the year we filmed DCC and left us alone.
“The result is an authentic portrait of one of the most storied and beloved institutions we have in American pop culture.”
You can stream America’s Sweethearts: Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders on Netflix from June 20th.
This story originally appeared on The-sun.com read the full story