Hollywood met baseball at Citi Field this week, but the biggest buzz around the Mets-Dodgers series had less to do with the game and more to do with where Emma Stone ended up sitting.
Stone was spotted in the Mets dugout with Juan Soto before the game, and the appearance was tied to filming for the upcoming baseball-romance movie The Catch, which is scheduled for a 2027 release. The production needed first-row seats in right field, and that’s where the controversy started.
According to the X account “Knicks Memes,” the Mets reached out last week to a season ticket holder of 29 years and told him he was getting a seat upgrade. The team reportedly sold it as a goodwill move after a rough season. But the reality was different: those seats were needed for Stone and Chris Pine as part of the movie shoot.
The fan expected premium club seats. Instead, he was moved to the 16th row on the first-base side, a swap that many saw as anything but an upgrade. His original spot offered a prime field-level view in the outfield, and the change left the impression that the Mets had put the production first and the loyal customer second.
Stone later interacted with players as filming continued around the ballpark, including that dugout moment with Soto. The shoot brought extra cameras and cast members into the stadium, and both teams reportedly wore their standard uniforms to make it work.
Soto, already one of the highest-paid players in the game, even picked up a brief acting credit by taking part in a scene.
For the Mets, it was another awkward wrinkle in a difficult season. The club sits near the bottom of the NL East, and the decision to move a longtime season ticket holder for a film crew drew mixed reaction from fans.
Some saw it as a necessary part of hosting the production. Others thought it was a bad look for the organization.
Either way, the Hollywood-baseball crossover at Citi Field now comes with a logistical story attached.
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