The worlds of football and cinema just came together in a huge way. If you thought Ousmane Dembele winning the Ballon d’or was the best part of his year then think again. The PSG star is now part of the Peaky Blinders family. He is not replacing Tommy Shelby in the movie but he is the face of the marketing for the release of The Immortal Man on Netflix.
In this video,Dembele is walking out of a large mansion looking very sharp. He is wearing a dark suit that looks like it belongs in old Birmingham. A classic black car is waiting for him on the path. The driver opens the door and asks a simple question. He says “where to Boss?”
Dembele does not answer. He looks down at his leather boots for a second. These are the famous boots that the gang members wear when they are ready for work. He looks up and says “You already know”. It is a short clip but his presence is very strong.
But why Dembele? The producers probably chose him because he has a calm energy that matches the Shelby vibe, both in how he plays and generally how he carries himself in top-notch composure. His recent Ballon d’or and quintuple winning season with PSG also marked him as a top celebrity in France as of late.
Although his current season so far isn’t matching his Ballon D’or winning season, he still has a respectable 12 goal contributions in Ligue 1, and 6 goal contributions in the Champions League for PSG. He is in the same forward role under Luis Enrique, where he hopes to lead PSG to another Champions League and Ligue 1 title, as he did last year.
The Frenchman is still listed at a $110 million transfer market value.
Here are some wonderful photos of Dembele in vintage Birmingham gear.
There was also some fan backlash regarding whether it was cultural appropriation for Dembele, of African heritage to represent a common outfit worn by White men. But historically there were a group of violent Birmingham groups which had Black men a part of their group as well.
Overall, fan reaction has been fawning over this crossover. French football twitter has come out in large support for the movie, so the promotion seems to have been an success online.
Some even compared Dembele’s classy yet gangster look to Oscar winner Michael B Jordan from Sinners.
same aura pic.twitter.com/Gtui4NySp0
— emanu (@selmosalvatore) March 19, 2026
Netflix had earlier promoted the release of the New movie in Atletico Madrid’s home game, where fans noticed models in vintage apparel in the Metropolitano. Some Atletico players also styled in Peaky Blinders-esque fashion in a video promotion. The video features stars such as Griezmann, Koke and Sorloth.
In addition to Dembele’s promotion, Netflix and Peaky Blinders have partnered with other clubs, such as West Midland’s own Birmingham City, who came out with this promotion with some of their players for the new movie.
In a truly historic crossover, it is great to see the football club represent one of the most infamous eras of it’s region, but also good part on Netflix to include Birmingham City in the promotion despite being in the 2nd tier of English football.
Ahead of their Europa League tie, LOSC Lille also posted this Peaky Blinders themed graphic against Aston Villa, a Birmingham based football club. Although they lost 2-0 in the tie, they were at least stylish.
The movie arrives on Netflix today on March 20 2026. These ads make the film feel like a massive event. Seeing your favorite footballers in a historical setting is very cool. It makes the movie feel bigger than a normal drama. Whether you love football or the Shelby family this is a great moment. The film is now premiering in select U.K cities, such as Birmingham, and on Netflix today.
