“It’s intimidating for anyone to want to play anyone, just because life is so precious, and everyone’s life is so rich and so full, and you want to know that you’re coming into it with the best intentions,” says Kelvin Harrison Jr., who takes on the role of Martin Luther King Jr. in National Geographic’s limited series “Genius: MLK/X.”
The eight-episode drama chronicles the lives of civil rights pioneers Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X (played by Aaron Pierre). It’s currently streaming on Disney+ and Hulu.
See Weruche Opia (‘Genius: MLK/X’) on the ‘overwhelming’ responsibility of playing Coretta Scott King
“The reason why I get to have a career is because of Dr. King,” Harrison states. “The reason why I get to live the life I get to live, and my freedoms, and my rights, and my voice, and my image, and so much of my identity,...
The eight-episode drama chronicles the lives of civil rights pioneers Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X (played by Aaron Pierre). It’s currently streaming on Disney+ and Hulu.
See Weruche Opia (‘Genius: MLK/X’) on the ‘overwhelming’ responsibility of playing Coretta Scott King
“The reason why I get to have a career is because of Dr. King,” Harrison states. “The reason why I get to live the life I get to live, and my freedoms, and my rights, and my voice, and my image, and so much of my identity,...
- 5/8/2024
- by Denton Davidson
- Gold Derby
How difficult is it to embody a legend in film? David Oyelowo had to answer this question for himself in 2014, when he portrayed Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in the critically-acclaimed movie “Selma.” Now, Paramount+ is offering a new documentary dedicated to Oyelowo’s journey toward becoming Dr. King in that film, appropriately entitled “Becoming King” and available on Monday, Feb. 19. You can watch with a 7-Day Free Trial of Paramount Plus.
How to Watch 'Becoming King' When: Monday, February 19, 2024 Where: Paramount Plus Stream: Watch with a 7-Day Free Trial of Paramount Plus. Get 30 Days Free$5.99+ / month paramountplus.com
For a Limited Time, Get a Month of Paramount+ With Code: HUJQ6R.
About 'Becoming King'
Directed by Jessica Oyelowo, “Becoming King” chronicles a seven-year transformation from actor into civil rights legend. The documentary will feature intimate footage from the film’s production, as well as interviews with Oyelowo’s closest associates and teachers,...
How to Watch 'Becoming King' When: Monday, February 19, 2024 Where: Paramount Plus Stream: Watch with a 7-Day Free Trial of Paramount Plus. Get 30 Days Free$5.99+ / month paramountplus.com
For a Limited Time, Get a Month of Paramount+ With Code: HUJQ6R.
About 'Becoming King'
Directed by Jessica Oyelowo, “Becoming King” chronicles a seven-year transformation from actor into civil rights legend. The documentary will feature intimate footage from the film’s production, as well as interviews with Oyelowo’s closest associates and teachers,...
- 2/19/2024
- by David Satin
- The Streamable
Exclusive: What does it take to become Civil Rights icon Martin Luther King Jr? David Oyelowo took on the challenge for Ava DuVernay’s underrated 2014 film Selma. It’s all there in Becoming King, a new documentary coming to Paramount+.
The 1965 march through the segregationist state of Alabama resulted in brutal beatings by local authorities and white vigilante groups as activist marchers crossed the Edmund Pettus Bridge en route to the state house in Montgomery. They didn’t get there, that day. Called Bloody Sunday, the nationally televised footage was shocking and shameful, and it left activist and future congressman John Lewis with a fractured skull. Six days later, President Lyndon Johnson had seen enough and gave a nationwide TV address pledging support for a National Voting Rights bill that became law after he introduced it in Congress. It was a milestone moment.
Oyelowo’s long preparation to play Dr. King...
The 1965 march through the segregationist state of Alabama resulted in brutal beatings by local authorities and white vigilante groups as activist marchers crossed the Edmund Pettus Bridge en route to the state house in Montgomery. They didn’t get there, that day. Called Bloody Sunday, the nationally televised footage was shocking and shameful, and it left activist and future congressman John Lewis with a fractured skull. Six days later, President Lyndon Johnson had seen enough and gave a nationwide TV address pledging support for a National Voting Rights bill that became law after he introduced it in Congress. It was a milestone moment.
Oyelowo’s long preparation to play Dr. King...
- 2/14/2024
- by Mike Fleming Jr
- Deadline Film + TV
David Oyelowo said Brad Pitt, an executive producer of Selma, gave him a valuable piece of advice about not rushing to determine any film’s ultimate place in the culture.
Upon its initial release in December 2014, Oyelowo recalled in an appearance Tuesday at the NATPE Global conference in Miami, “there was this controversy about whether the film was historically accurate.” Plus, there was “the whole Oscar thing and #oscarsowhite, all this noise around the film, as opposed to what the film was.”
Despite acclaim for Oyelowo’s performance as Dr. Martin Luther King and overall support from critics and awards voters, the film received just two Oscar nominations, including one for Best Picture, winning only for Best Original Song. Its global box office total was a muted $67.8 million.
Pitt told Oyelowo, who was upset about all of the turmoil, “‘Don’t worry about any of that,” the actor recalled. “You...
Upon its initial release in December 2014, Oyelowo recalled in an appearance Tuesday at the NATPE Global conference in Miami, “there was this controversy about whether the film was historically accurate.” Plus, there was “the whole Oscar thing and #oscarsowhite, all this noise around the film, as opposed to what the film was.”
Despite acclaim for Oyelowo’s performance as Dr. Martin Luther King and overall support from critics and awards voters, the film received just two Oscar nominations, including one for Best Picture, winning only for Best Original Song. Its global box office total was a muted $67.8 million.
Pitt told Oyelowo, who was upset about all of the turmoil, “‘Don’t worry about any of that,” the actor recalled. “You...
- 1/17/2024
- by Dade Hayes
- Deadline Film + TV
Exclusive: Award-winning filmmakers Limbert Fabian (MLK: Now Is The Time) and Brandon Oldenburg (Lost Ollie) are partnering as directors, under the name InBetween, and have signed with Anonymous Content for representation.
A pair of longtime collaborators who have seen great success both with joint efforts and solo projects, Fabian and Oldenburg first met on the campus of Ringling College of Art and Design. Over the last 28 years, the pair have teamed on numerous projects across features, episodic, commercials, and interactive entertainment, including the Daytime Emmy-winning animated shorts Silent and Taking Flight, for Dolby and Radio Flyer respectively, and the Cannes Lions Grand Prix winner The Scarecrow for Chipotle.
Said Fabian in a statement to Deadline, “It’s a thrilling time for us as a directing duo. We share a common vision for filmmaking, and feel it’s time to tell stories as independent creators. We look forward to working with...
A pair of longtime collaborators who have seen great success both with joint efforts and solo projects, Fabian and Oldenburg first met on the campus of Ringling College of Art and Design. Over the last 28 years, the pair have teamed on numerous projects across features, episodic, commercials, and interactive entertainment, including the Daytime Emmy-winning animated shorts Silent and Taking Flight, for Dolby and Radio Flyer respectively, and the Cannes Lions Grand Prix winner The Scarecrow for Chipotle.
Said Fabian in a statement to Deadline, “It’s a thrilling time for us as a directing duo. We share a common vision for filmmaking, and feel it’s time to tell stories as independent creators. We look forward to working with...
- 10/20/2023
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
On Monday, to mark the 60th anniversary of the historic March on Washington, Netflix debuted the first teaser trailer for “Rustin,” the upcoming biography film about civil rights hero Bayard Rustin starring Emmy-winning actor Colman Domingo in the title role.
Directed by George C. Wolfe (“Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom”) and written by Julian Breece and “Milk” Oscar winner Dustin Lance Black, “Rustin” focuses on the critical role Rustin had in organizing the March on Washington, the famed 1963 civil rights event that culminated with Dr. Martin Luther King’s famous “I have a dream” speech.
Here’s the official synopsis of the film, provided by Netflix.
The architect of 1963’s momentous March on Washington, Bayard Rustin was one of the greatest activists and organizers the world has ever known. He challenged authority, never apologized for who he was, what he believed, or who he desired. And he did not back down.
Directed by George C. Wolfe (“Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom”) and written by Julian Breece and “Milk” Oscar winner Dustin Lance Black, “Rustin” focuses on the critical role Rustin had in organizing the March on Washington, the famed 1963 civil rights event that culminated with Dr. Martin Luther King’s famous “I have a dream” speech.
Here’s the official synopsis of the film, provided by Netflix.
The architect of 1963’s momentous March on Washington, Bayard Rustin was one of the greatest activists and organizers the world has ever known. He challenged authority, never apologized for who he was, what he believed, or who he desired. And he did not back down.
- 8/28/2023
- by Christopher Rosen
- Gold Derby
Tony Bennett's first record, "Because of You" was released in 1952 and it instantly codified the entertainer as one of the music world's great crooners. In 1962, his 15th record, "I Left My Heart in San Francisco" was certified platinum by the RIAA, but that was after he had already established himself with Count Basie and his Orchestra and as a great fan of songwriter Harold Arlen. All told, he released 61 records in his decades-long career, not including his eight albums of collaborations and duets. He sang with Frank Sinatra, Barbra Streisand, Ray Charles, Carrie Underwood, Stevie Wonder, Natalie Cole, Mariah Carey, Bono, Sting, Paul McCartney, Diana Krall, and many others. Most recently, he released two collaborations with Lady Gaga in 2018 and 2021. Bennett passed away on July 21, 2023 at the age of 96. He will be deeply missed.
Naturally, a talent of Bennett's stature couldn't be ignored by Hollywood, and he would appear...
Naturally, a talent of Bennett's stature couldn't be ignored by Hollywood, and he would appear...
- 7/21/2023
- by Witney Seibold
- Slash Film
The ABC revival of The Wonder Years is gearing up to premiere on Sept. 22 and the network has released the first trailer (above).
Its new incarnation follows the Black middle-class Williams family in Montgomery, Al, during the turbulent late 1960s. Dean Williams (Elisha “E.J.” Williams) is the 12-year-old at the center of the coming of age story and Don Cheadle narrates as the voice of adult Dean.
His family consists of his parents, Bill (Dulé Hill) and Lillian (Saycon Sengbloh), and siblings Kim (Laura Kariuki) and Brad (Julian Lerner).
The series will fold real moments from history from the era like the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in 1968. Fred Savage, star of the original The Wonder Years, directed the premiere and executive produced on the new The Wonder Years, alongside creator Saladin K. Patterson, Lee Daniels, and Marc Velez who are also EPs.
“Being able to look...
Its new incarnation follows the Black middle-class Williams family in Montgomery, Al, during the turbulent late 1960s. Dean Williams (Elisha “E.J.” Williams) is the 12-year-old at the center of the coming of age story and Don Cheadle narrates as the voice of adult Dean.
His family consists of his parents, Bill (Dulé Hill) and Lillian (Saycon Sengbloh), and siblings Kim (Laura Kariuki) and Brad (Julian Lerner).
The series will fold real moments from history from the era like the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in 1968. Fred Savage, star of the original The Wonder Years, directed the premiere and executive produced on the new The Wonder Years, alongside creator Saladin K. Patterson, Lee Daniels, and Marc Velez who are also EPs.
“Being able to look...
- 8/26/2021
- by Rosy Cordero
- Deadline Film + TV
Actors will love Liesl Tommy’s Aretha Franklin biopic “Respect.” Thirteen years after the Queen of Soul first approached Jennifer Hudson, who had just won her “Dreamgirls” Oscar, with the idea of playing her in a movie, “Respect” wrapped filming in February 2020, one month before lockdown. MGM decided to push back the movie from December 2020 to August 13, 2021, to give it a chance to play in theaters.
Judging from the way “Respect” played Saturday night at the Bruin Theatre in Westwood to (masked and vaccinated) members of the Screen Actors Guild nominating committee, the studio made the right choice to favor an exclusive theatrical release. Broadway director Tommy has mounted a solid crowdpleaser, written by Tracey Scott Wilson, that will satisfy generations of Franklin fans. And ageless 39-year-old singer-actress Hudson, who plays Franklin from her teens through her acclaimed 1972 gospel concert “Amazing Grace,” is on her way to a second Oscar nomination.
Judging from the way “Respect” played Saturday night at the Bruin Theatre in Westwood to (masked and vaccinated) members of the Screen Actors Guild nominating committee, the studio made the right choice to favor an exclusive theatrical release. Broadway director Tommy has mounted a solid crowdpleaser, written by Tracey Scott Wilson, that will satisfy generations of Franklin fans. And ageless 39-year-old singer-actress Hudson, who plays Franklin from her teens through her acclaimed 1972 gospel concert “Amazing Grace,” is on her way to a second Oscar nomination.
- 8/8/2021
- by Anne Thompson
- Thompson on Hollywood
Actors will love Liesl Tommy’s Aretha Franklin biopic “Respect.” Thirteen years after the Queen of Soul first approached Jennifer Hudson, who had just won her “Dreamgirls” Oscar, with the idea of playing her in a movie, “Respect” wrapped filming in February 2020, one month before lockdown. MGM decided to push back the movie from December 2020 to August 13, 2021, to give it a chance to play in theaters.
Judging from the way “Respect” played Saturday night at the Bruin Theatre in Westwood to (masked and vaccinated) members of the Screen Actors Guild nominating committee, the studio made the right choice to favor an exclusive theatrical release. Broadway director Tommy has mounted a solid crowdpleaser, written by Tracey Scott Wilson, that will satisfy generations of Franklin fans. And ageless 39-year-old singer-actress Hudson, who plays Franklin from her teens through her acclaimed 1972 gospel concert “Amazing Grace,” is on her way to a second Oscar nomination.
Judging from the way “Respect” played Saturday night at the Bruin Theatre in Westwood to (masked and vaccinated) members of the Screen Actors Guild nominating committee, the studio made the right choice to favor an exclusive theatrical release. Broadway director Tommy has mounted a solid crowdpleaser, written by Tracey Scott Wilson, that will satisfy generations of Franklin fans. And ageless 39-year-old singer-actress Hudson, who plays Franklin from her teens through her acclaimed 1972 gospel concert “Amazing Grace,” is on her way to a second Oscar nomination.
- 8/8/2021
- by Anne Thompson
- Indiewire
Chicago –The City of Chicago’s influence as a Film Town is one of its greatest strengths. Doc10, a ten documentary film fest mostly at the Northside’s Davis Theater, opens Thursday, June 17th, 2021. For information on the line-up and tickets, click here.
The opening film will be at the ChiTown drive-in, and will be the Sundance Festival sensation “The Summer of Soul” (capsule review below). Click on any title, either in the capsules or in this paragraph, for ticket and description information. The line up includes ”In the Same Breath”, ”Ailey”, ”My Name is Pauli Murray”, ”Pray Away”, ”Sabaya” and the Closing Night film, ”Roadrunner: A Film About Anthony Bourdain”.
Summer of Soul
Photo credit: Doc10.org
The Doc10 Film Festival launched in 2016 to bring premieres of ten highly curated documentary films to Chicago in a neighborhood setting, as an extension of the work of Chicago Media Project (Cmp...
The opening film will be at the ChiTown drive-in, and will be the Sundance Festival sensation “The Summer of Soul” (capsule review below). Click on any title, either in the capsules or in this paragraph, for ticket and description information. The line up includes ”In the Same Breath”, ”Ailey”, ”My Name is Pauli Murray”, ”Pray Away”, ”Sabaya” and the Closing Night film, ”Roadrunner: A Film About Anthony Bourdain”.
Summer of Soul
Photo credit: Doc10.org
The Doc10 Film Festival launched in 2016 to bring premieres of ten highly curated documentary films to Chicago in a neighborhood setting, as an extension of the work of Chicago Media Project (Cmp...
- 6/17/2021
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
As pointed out on Twitter all weekend, the TV show Atlanta predicted Justice before it was probably even a thought in Justin Bieber’s mind. A 2016 episode of the series has the white pop star portrayed by a black actor, Austin Crute. When the fictionalized Bieber makes an appearance at a celebrity basketball game, he announces that he’s not as bad as people thought he was before performing a single from his album — which is titled, of course, Justice.
Bieber has spent the better part of his twenties on the same mission,...
Bieber has spent the better part of his twenties on the same mission,...
- 3/22/2021
- by Brittany Spanos
- Rollingstone.com
Yaphet Kotto was among the throngs of people who watched Martin Luther King Jr. speak during the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. And he said years later, Alien helped him realize the answer to a question he asked at that very moment.
Kotto died Monday. He was 81.
During a previous Q&a at the Toronto International Film Festival, Kotto, who played Parker, the chief engineer in the 1979 sci-fi classic, shared a powerful story.
“At the March on Washington, I stood there on the steps, watching Dr. King talk about his dream,” Kotto began. “And I wondered whether ...
Kotto died Monday. He was 81.
During a previous Q&a at the Toronto International Film Festival, Kotto, who played Parker, the chief engineer in the 1979 sci-fi classic, shared a powerful story.
“At the March on Washington, I stood there on the steps, watching Dr. King talk about his dream,” Kotto began. “And I wondered whether ...
- 3/16/2021
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Yaphet Kotto was among the throngs of people who watched Martin Luther King Jr. speak during the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. And he said years later, Alien helped him realize the answer to a question he asked himself at that very moment.
Kotto died Monday. He was 81.
During a previous Q&a at the Toronto International Film Festival, Kotto, who played Parker, the chief engineer in the 1979 sci-fi classic, shared a powerful story.
“At the March on Washington, I stood there on the steps, watching Dr. King talk about his dream,” Kotto began. “And I wondered ...
Kotto died Monday. He was 81.
During a previous Q&a at the Toronto International Film Festival, Kotto, who played Parker, the chief engineer in the 1979 sci-fi classic, shared a powerful story.
“At the March on Washington, I stood there on the steps, watching Dr. King talk about his dream,” Kotto began. “And I wondered ...
- 3/16/2021
- The Hollywood Reporter - Film + TV
Black filmmakers are offering an unvarnished look at the legacy of the 1960s civil rights era, examining America’s tortured history of racism and drawing parallels to contemporary cries for social justice in some of the year’s most captivating films.
Regina King’s “One Night in Miami,” Shaka King’s “Judas and the Black Messiah” and Spike Lee’s “Da 5 Bloods” serve as a triptych of the Black experience, inviting viewers inside the great debates that accompanied an earlier generation’s fight for equality. Together, they chart the course of that turbulent decade.
Lee has spent his career spotlighting Black stories that have gone unshared or were framed inauthentically in the history books, most famously with 1992’s “Malcolm X,” which gave audiences a new view of the man behind the fiery speeches, but the director “practically killed myself to get made.”
“Black folks are part of American history,...
Regina King’s “One Night in Miami,” Shaka King’s “Judas and the Black Messiah” and Spike Lee’s “Da 5 Bloods” serve as a triptych of the Black experience, inviting viewers inside the great debates that accompanied an earlier generation’s fight for equality. Together, they chart the course of that turbulent decade.
Lee has spent his career spotlighting Black stories that have gone unshared or were framed inauthentically in the history books, most famously with 1992’s “Malcolm X,” which gave audiences a new view of the man behind the fiery speeches, but the director “practically killed myself to get made.”
“Black folks are part of American history,...
- 2/19/2021
- by Angelique Jackson
- Variety Film + TV
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. today is widely acknowledged as a hero, a martyr in the long struggle to end racial prejudice and inequality in America.
But during his lifetime King provoked far more contempt than admiration, especially by a power structure that viewed him as a threat to the established order and white hegemony.
“We must mark him now,” read a 1963 FBI memo, “as the most dangerous Negro of the future in this Nation from the standpoint of communism, the Negro and national security.”
That warning was sent by the bureau’s chief of domestic intelligence two days after the famed March on Washington where King delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech. It’s among the declassified documents that appear in MLK/FBI, Sam Pollard’s documentary which last week earned a place on the Oscar shortlist. The film dissects the sustained effort by the FBI under J. Edgar Hoover...
But during his lifetime King provoked far more contempt than admiration, especially by a power structure that viewed him as a threat to the established order and white hegemony.
“We must mark him now,” read a 1963 FBI memo, “as the most dangerous Negro of the future in this Nation from the standpoint of communism, the Negro and national security.”
That warning was sent by the bureau’s chief of domestic intelligence two days after the famed March on Washington where King delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech. It’s among the declassified documents that appear in MLK/FBI, Sam Pollard’s documentary which last week earned a place on the Oscar shortlist. The film dissects the sustained effort by the FBI under J. Edgar Hoover...
- 2/18/2021
- by Matthew Carey
- Deadline Film + TV
Chicago – Patrick McDonald of HollywoodChicago.com appears on “The Morning Mess” with Scott Thompson on Wbgr-fm on February 11th, 2021, reviewing the new film “Judas and the Black Messiah,” in theaters and streaming on HBO Max beginning February 12th, 2021.
Rating: 4.0/5.0
“Judas and the Black Messiah” is set in 1969, as a new leader and movement emerged after the 1968 killing of Dr. King … the Black Panthers became more relevant in urban communities. In Chicago, the Panther chairman was the charismatic Fred Hampton (Daniel Kaluuya of Get Out), whose leadership quality was a positive combination of Malcolm X and Dr. King. FBI director J Edgar Hoover (Martin Sheen) wants no more “Black Messiahs” so the the FBI plants an informant Judas (Lakeith Stanfield) to spy on Hampton and bring him down.
“Judas and the Black Messiah” is available to stream on HBO Max and in theaters beginning February 12th. Featuring Daniel Kaluuya, Lakeith Stanfield and Martin Sheen.
Rating: 4.0/5.0
“Judas and the Black Messiah” is set in 1969, as a new leader and movement emerged after the 1968 killing of Dr. King … the Black Panthers became more relevant in urban communities. In Chicago, the Panther chairman was the charismatic Fred Hampton (Daniel Kaluuya of Get Out), whose leadership quality was a positive combination of Malcolm X and Dr. King. FBI director J Edgar Hoover (Martin Sheen) wants no more “Black Messiahs” so the the FBI plants an informant Judas (Lakeith Stanfield) to spy on Hampton and bring him down.
“Judas and the Black Messiah” is available to stream on HBO Max and in theaters beginning February 12th. Featuring Daniel Kaluuya, Lakeith Stanfield and Martin Sheen.
- 2/13/2021
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
Chicago – It was one week of 73 feature films and 50 shorts, and it was shared with a virtual and online audience. The 2021 Sundance Film Festival will be remembered as within the pandemic sphere, but it also was notable for the depth and breadth of their film offerings, and how it reached a larger cinema universe.
The Sundance Film Festival is an annual event organized by the Sundance Institute – an organization founded by actor Robert Redford in 1980 – and dedicated to the growth of independent artists. It usually takes place each January in Park City, Utah, and other locations, and is the largest independent film festival in the United States. It includes competitive categories in documentary and dramatic films, both feature length and short works, as well as out-of-competition categories for showcasing new films.
That’s a Wrap!
Photo credit: Sundance Film Festival
Sundance: Five Films That Stood Out
Patrick McDonald of HollywoodChicago.
The Sundance Film Festival is an annual event organized by the Sundance Institute – an organization founded by actor Robert Redford in 1980 – and dedicated to the growth of independent artists. It usually takes place each January in Park City, Utah, and other locations, and is the largest independent film festival in the United States. It includes competitive categories in documentary and dramatic films, both feature length and short works, as well as out-of-competition categories for showcasing new films.
That’s a Wrap!
Photo credit: Sundance Film Festival
Sundance: Five Films That Stood Out
Patrick McDonald of HollywoodChicago.
- 2/4/2021
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
A version of this story about “MLK/FBI” and Sam Pollard first appeared in the Documentaries issue of TheWrap’s awards magazine.
The documentary “MLK/FBI” delves into the years in the 1960s when the FBI engaged in a clandestine campaign to spy on and discredit civil rights activist and leader Martin Luther King, Jr. Director Sam Pollard’s film is a portrait of a turbulent time when the country was divided and race relations were a flashpoint for conflict — and it appears now in a different era, but one that is bitterly divided in its own way.
The film premiered at 2020’s Toronto International Film Festival, in the wake of Black Lives Matter protests around the country. It was released theatrically and on VOD on Jan. 15, in time for Martin Luther King Day and for the end of the Donald Trump administration, with its attempted demonization of those protestors. “It seems...
The documentary “MLK/FBI” delves into the years in the 1960s when the FBI engaged in a clandestine campaign to spy on and discredit civil rights activist and leader Martin Luther King, Jr. Director Sam Pollard’s film is a portrait of a turbulent time when the country was divided and race relations were a flashpoint for conflict — and it appears now in a different era, but one that is bitterly divided in its own way.
The film premiered at 2020’s Toronto International Film Festival, in the wake of Black Lives Matter protests around the country. It was released theatrically and on VOD on Jan. 15, in time for Martin Luther King Day and for the end of the Donald Trump administration, with its attempted demonization of those protestors. “It seems...
- 1/23/2021
- by Steve Pond
- The Wrap
January 18, 2021, Americans observe Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. Public figures, like Barack Obama, Viola Davis, and more took to social media to honor the life of Dr. King. Through sharing quotes, speeches, and music, these celebrities shared how they are honoring the life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. today. Barack Obama shared […]
The post Celebrities Honor Martin Luther King, Jr. On National Holiday appeared first on uInterview.
The post Celebrities Honor Martin Luther King, Jr. On National Holiday appeared first on uInterview.
- 1/19/2021
- by Michael Major
- Uinterview
Chicago – Sam Pollard has been a behind-the-scenes film editor/producer for most of his career, best known for his work with Spike Lee. But recently, after sporadic director assignments over the years, he has broken out with two major profile documentaries, one on Sammy Davis Jr. in 2017, and his most recent “MLK/FBI.”
MLK is of course, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and the FBI is the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The story is of government overreach in the surveillance of Dr. King, revealing some very human foibles that FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover hoped to use against the civil rights icon and the movement that he led. As in his previous work that included King, “Eyes on the Prize,” Sam Pollard has structured a meticulous history lesson, one of truth and morality.
Director Sam Pollard of ‘MLK/FBI’
Photo credit: IFC Films
Pollard has had a long and varied career in the film industry,...
MLK is of course, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and the FBI is the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The story is of government overreach in the surveillance of Dr. King, revealing some very human foibles that FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover hoped to use against the civil rights icon and the movement that he led. As in his previous work that included King, “Eyes on the Prize,” Sam Pollard has structured a meticulous history lesson, one of truth and morality.
Director Sam Pollard of ‘MLK/FBI’
Photo credit: IFC Films
Pollard has had a long and varied career in the film industry,...
- 1/14/2021
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
Sam Pollard’s “MLK/FBI” follows the dirty war that America’s FBI declared on civil rights figurehead Martin Luther King, a vendetta that began in the 50s and ended with his assassination in 1968, inspired by recent revelations (as well as credible long-held suspicions), and backed up by declassified secret government documents. Documentary festival IDFA, which runs until Dec. 6, selected the title in their Masters section.
Welcoming Pollard, an Oscar nominee and three-time Emmy winner, to the festival, IDFA artistic director Orwa Nyrabia wondered why the African-American director had taken so long to get round to this subject, given his well-known passion for documenting the injustices of the civil rights era. The director welcomed the question, noting that sometimes a story can “be right in front of you, but you’re not quite sure when it should be put into production, when it should be told.”
“I had spent a lot of time,...
Welcoming Pollard, an Oscar nominee and three-time Emmy winner, to the festival, IDFA artistic director Orwa Nyrabia wondered why the African-American director had taken so long to get round to this subject, given his well-known passion for documenting the injustices of the civil rights era. The director welcomed the question, noting that sometimes a story can “be right in front of you, but you’re not quite sure when it should be put into production, when it should be told.”
“I had spent a lot of time,...
- 11/29/2020
- by Damon Wise
- Variety Film + TV
It all began with a single image: a bikini-clad Madonna wrapped in an American flag. "Truth is where you find it. Get up and vote," the artist broke it down "Vogue"-style as two dancers waved flags behind her. "Dr. King, Malcolm X, freedom of speech is as good as sex." Then, she delivered her final tantalizing line: "And if you don't vote, you're going to get a spanking.'' And with that, Rock the Vote had released its first PSA. If Madonna was hoping to elicit a reaction from the American people, she got her wish. The pop star set off a flurry of criticism, with the Veterans of Foreign Wars organization accusing her,...
- 10/25/2020
- E! Online
Sam Pollard’s new documentary, “MLK/FBI,” lays out a detailed account of the racially-fueled FBI surveillance that hounded Dr. Martin Luther King’s activism throughout the 1950s and ’60s. Pollard worried that by shinning a light on the salacious material and the FBI’s attempts to discredit Dr. King might just be helping the FBI’s cause, but he felt a responsibility to tell the story nonetheless.
“Absolutely, we thought about it,” Pollard said during TheWrap’s virtual studio for the 2020 Toronto International Film Festival. After repeatedly talking it over with producer Benjamin Hedin, the two were compelled to press forward.
“Here we are, almost 40, 50 years later and we just thought it was important to document this very complicated and densely packed story about how King was constantly being harassed and surveilled by J. Edgar Hoover, William Sullivan and the FBI,” Pollard said
As a student of the civil rights movement,...
“Absolutely, we thought about it,” Pollard said during TheWrap’s virtual studio for the 2020 Toronto International Film Festival. After repeatedly talking it over with producer Benjamin Hedin, the two were compelled to press forward.
“Here we are, almost 40, 50 years later and we just thought it was important to document this very complicated and densely packed story about how King was constantly being harassed and surveilled by J. Edgar Hoover, William Sullivan and the FBI,” Pollard said
As a student of the civil rights movement,...
- 10/5/2020
- by Trey Williams
- The Wrap
Update: Capitol Music Group, Warner Music Group and their respective labels announced Saturday that they would align with “Black Out Tuesday.”
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Black Lives Matter. #Theshowmustbepaused
A post shared by Capitol Records (@capitolrecords) on May 30, 2020 at 7:25pm Pdt
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A post shared by Atlantic Records (@atlanticrecords) on May 30, 2020 at 2:50pm Pdt
Following the killing of George Floyd and nationwide protests, dozens of music industry members have pledged to join a grassroots campaign to make June 2nd “Black Out Tuesday.”
Billed...
View this post on Instagram
Black Lives Matter. #Theshowmustbepaused
A post shared by Capitol Records (@capitolrecords) on May 30, 2020 at 7:25pm Pdt
View this post on Instagram
A post shared by Atlantic Records (@atlanticrecords) on May 30, 2020 at 2:50pm Pdt
Following the killing of George Floyd and nationwide protests, dozens of music industry members have pledged to join a grassroots campaign to make June 2nd “Black Out Tuesday.”
Billed...
- 5/30/2020
- by Daniel Kreps
- Rollingstone.com
It’s easy to feel intimidated by wine. All those hard-to-pronounce names, so many vineyards to remember. That’s the world Elijah, played by Mamoudou Athie, wants to enter in the new Netflix movie “Uncorked,” about a young man who dreams of taking the brutally difficult master sommelier exam instead of taking over his family’s Memphis barbecue restaurant.
It’s also the way director Prentice Penny felt before he was invited to a wedding in Paris and somehow caught the wine bug. Penny’s journey to becoming a wine buff — taking an intro to wine class, reading books and watching documentaries — was part of the inspiration for “Uncorked.”
Early in the film, Elijah breaks it down for a wine store customer by relating wines to hip hop artists. Chardonnay is like the Jay-Z of wines, riesling is the Drake, while pinot grigio might be Kanye West, he explains, winning her admiration in the process.
It’s also the way director Prentice Penny felt before he was invited to a wedding in Paris and somehow caught the wine bug. Penny’s journey to becoming a wine buff — taking an intro to wine class, reading books and watching documentaries — was part of the inspiration for “Uncorked.”
Early in the film, Elijah breaks it down for a wine store customer by relating wines to hip hop artists. Chardonnay is like the Jay-Z of wines, riesling is the Drake, while pinot grigio might be Kanye West, he explains, winning her admiration in the process.
- 3/28/2020
- by Pat Saperstein
- Variety Film + TV
He may have been given the Captain America shield in Marvel blockbuster Avengers: Endgame, but Anthony Mackie shows a more serious side with Seberg. He plays Hakim Jamal, the real-life Black Panthers activist whose relationship with the French New Wave actress (Kristen Stewart) led to her being targeted by the FBI during the late 1960s. Mackie also produced and stars in The Banker—the true tale of the first African American banker in the U.S. Getting the latter financed taught him a lot about the industry, he says, while telling the story of the hounded Jean Seberg has made him grateful for his own privacy.
Deadline: What was it about this true story of Jean Seberg’s treatment by the FBI, because of her allegiance to the Black Panther organization that was so interesting to you?
Anthony MacKie: I wasn’t familiar with her story at all,...
Deadline: What was it about this true story of Jean Seberg’s treatment by the FBI, because of her allegiance to the Black Panther organization that was so interesting to you?
Anthony MacKie: I wasn’t familiar with her story at all,...
- 11/14/2019
- by Stevie Wong
- Deadline Film + TV
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