A new Netflix comedy series starring Will Ferrell just put Ocala in the spotlight, referring to the city as the setting for a pivotal and humorous funeral scene in its second episode.
The ten-episode series, titled The Hawk, officially debuted on the streaming platform on Thursday, July 16. The show marks Ferrell’s first-ever leading role in a television comedy series.
In The Hawk, Ferrell portrays Lonnie “The Hawk” Hawkins, a boisterous, self-absorbed former world-number-one golf legend from 2004 who is desperately trying to revive his faded career and capture a career Grand Slam.
Lonnie’s wild comeback attempt is thrown into immediate disarray in the premiere episode when his longtime best friend and caddie passes away. In the second episode, titled “The Family That Plays Together,” the late caddie’s family and friends host a funeral service for him in Ocala.
However, rather than attending the memorial from the start, Lonnie spends the majority of the day competing in the South Georgia Classic tournament in Valdosta. That tournament used to be part of the Korn Ferry Tour until it ended in 2014.
After completing his round and while waiting anxiously to hear if he managed to make his first tournament cut in years, Lonnie decides at the last minute to make the drive.
When asked where the funeral is, Lonnie’s character responds, “Oh, it’s in Ocala, about an hour and a half away.”
His new caddie, Sam (who is played by Fortune Feimster), immediately chimes in with, “I bet I can make it there in like an hour.”
After a brief back-and-forth conversation, Lonnie and Sam decide to make the high-speed trip, driving down to Florida just in time to pay their last respects.
Ferrell co-created and executive produces The Hawk alongside Chris Henchy and Harper Steele. The series features 10 episodes and a star-studded cast including Molly Shannon as Lonnie’s estranged wife, Stacy, and Jimmy Tatro as his son, Lance. Feimster delivers a standout performance as Sam, the free-spirited Walmart drifter who becomes Lonnie’s new caddie.
The cast also features Luke Wilson as rival golfer “Golden Fisk,” Chris Parnell as PGA TOUR board member Anton, and Katelyn Tarver as Tatro’s fiancé.
The Ocala-centric storyline in The Hawk marks the second time this year that a major television premiere has given a direct nod to Marion County.
In March 2026, the Scott Speedman-led ABC crime drama R.J. Decker made its nationwide debut. In the pilot episode of that South Florida-based private investigator series, the main character specifically mentions having served two years in a Marion County correctional facility.
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