Wrexham’s Hollywood dream has never been subtle. It was never meant to be.
What began as a non-league rescue act under Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney has accelerated into one of the most compelling stories in English football. The club that once scraped for survival in the National League now sits in the Championship, framed by cameras, global attention and an unapologetically ambitious target: the Premier League.
And with that ambition comes the next logical question: who becomes the first true “Hollywood” player to match the owners’ star power?
‘Jack Grealish is definitely the Hollywood signing’
Former Republic of Ireland international Gareth Barry believes the answer is obvious.
With the “Welcome to Wrexham” documentary turning the Racecourse Ground into a stage watched worldwide, Barry sees the club as a magnet for players who enjoy the spotlight. For him, one name towers above the rest in any future recruitment drive.
“The Hollywood link brings that extra attraction to the club, players will have extra interest in going and playing there,” Barry told BOYLE Sports. “I certainly think it's an amazing story if they can get promotion and that would change the players they are looking at, but it might be too soon for them. Jack Grealish is definitely the Hollywood signing for Wrexham. If they can pull that off, it would be the perfect signing for them.”
The idea is bold. It is also entirely in keeping with what Wrexham have become.
Grealish at a crossroads
Grealish is expected to leave Manchester City permanently this summer once his loan spell at Everton ends. Now 30, he managed 22 Premier League appearances for the Toffees this season before injury cut his campaign short.
His future sits wide open. His profile remains huge. His personality, larger still.
Barry sees a potential fit between player and project, especially if Wrexham keep climbing.
He added: “Who knows what's going to happen with Jack. His move to Everton was only a loan. I'm not too sure how long he has left on his contract. But yeah, who knows where Jack wants to play. If he wants that Wrexham level of attention, it's a conversation maybe.”
That phrase – “Wrexham level of attention” – matters. This is not a normal Championship club, and any move there would be more than a football transfer. It would be a storyline, a global talking point, a continuation of a narrative that has already leapt beyond the usual boundaries of the EFL.
Ambition meets reality
For all the glamour of the speculation, the footballing reality remains blunt. A signing of that magnitude only comes into view if Wrexham complete the next phase of their rise.
Promotion to the Premier League is non-negotiable for such a move even to be seriously discussed. Reynolds and McElhenney have never disguised their intentions: they want Wrexham not just in the top flight, but established there, competing with clubs that have spent decades building their status.
To do that, at some point, they will have to pivot from clever, hungry signings to established international stars. Players with medals, caps and marketability. Players like Grealish.
For now, Phil Parkinson’s side are still fighting to make that leap. Wrexham sit seventh in the Championship table, with 63 points from 39 games, six points off the top three. The route is clear: finish in the top two for automatic promotion, or scrap their way through the play-offs.
The margins are thin. The stakes, enormous.
If they make it, the conversation changes. The calibre of targets changes. The perception of what is realistic changes.
And then the question stops being “Could Wrexham ever sign someone like Jack Grealish?” and becomes something far more pointed: in a Premier League era obsessed with narrative and visibility, why wouldn’t he be tempted?
