By John & Jimmy Flynn
Desperate to raise money for her ailing mother and deep-in-debt brother-in-law, a promising female referee gets dragged into fixing NCAA Men’s Basketball games for the mafia.
Hour-Long Series | Drama, Sports
Think of Winning Time
meets The Sopranos
meets Scandal.
Synopsis
She’s all in.
Up-and-coming NCAA Men’s Basketball referee Violet Mayhew never hesitates and never misses a call. Her boss, Jonathan Chambers, wants her to be the first woman to officiate a March Madness game—much to the chagrin of Violet’s older male colleagues, who jealously believe she’s advancing more for diversity than competence. Meanwhile, Violet carries on a steamy affair with Len Kirkland, a prominent head referee, despite both knowing this secret romance could jeopardize their jobs.
Violet’s fast-rising career keeps her away from home, where her family needs her. Following the sudden death of Violet’s sister, her mother, Pearl, has begun to lose her marbles. Taking inadequate care of Pearl is Violet’s brother-in-law, Billy D’Amico, a degenerate gambler who owes the mafia $57,000 due to poorly placed bets and a meat store that went bankrupt.
Pursuing Billy are violent loan shark, Chico Gambini and his deaf henchman, Harlow. To buy himself time to pay off his debt, Billy divulges insider information given to him by Violet about an upcoming game between St. John’s and Georgetown. Intrigued, but tired of Billy’s delays, Chico says he will bet on the tip, but if Billy’s wrong, Chico will kill Billy and Pearl.
Just before the game starts, Billy shows up unexpectedly and begs Violet to help St. John’s cover the spread. Enraged, Violet refuses, but then Billy lists all he’s done for Violet over the years: paying for her referee camps, buying her sister a house, and wiping her mother’s ass. She owes him
In the final moments of the game, Violet calls a questionable foul that lets St. John’s cover the spread. Afterwards, Violet defends herself against a suspicious Len, then meets a deliriously happy Billy. But his mood sours at the sight of Chico and Harlow, who know Violet fixed the outcome of the game. Chico abducts Violet, Billy and Pearl and brings them to Donna Gambini, Chico’s mom and the head of a waning crime family.
At her beauty parlor, flanked by her burly daughters Sofia and Chiara, Donna gives Violet an ultimatum: fix games for the Gambinis or die. In deeper than she ever imagined, Violet must now walk a tightrope to keep her career and her family alive.
Funny, violent, suspenseful and full of relatable family drama, The Ref gives audiences a behind-the-scenes look at referees, college basketball, organized crime and (somewhat) legal gambling.
Script
Bible
