Sundance adds Coogler-produced ‘Judas and the Black Messiah’
LOS ANGELES, Jan 13, (AP): The Ryan Coogler-produced Fred Hampton film “Judas and the Black Messiah” will have its premiere at the Sundance Film Festival before heading to HBO Max and theaters, programmers announced Tuesday.
Daniel Kaluuya plays the Black Panther Party chairman and his “Get Out” co-star Lakeith Stanfield plays FBI informant William O’Neill who agrees to infiltrate the group in the late 1960s. Martin Sheen costars as J. Edgar Hoover, who headed the FBI during that time.
“Judas and the Black Messiah” will premiere Feb. 1 on the Festival’s digital platforms and at various drive-ins in locations like Birmingham, Alabama, Columbia, South Carolina, and Atlanta, Georgia.
The 2021 Sundance Film Festival, which kicks off Jan. 28, is going largely virtual this year due to the pandemic. Tickets are currently on sale.
Coogler, who directed “Black Panther,” has a long history with Sundance. His first film “Fruitvale Station” premiered at the festival in 2013, winning the top audience and jury awards.
“Judas...” is among the 2021 Warner Bros. films that are debuting simultaneously in theaters and on HBO Max. It’ll be available for HBO Max subscribers in the US starting Feb. 12.
Spike Lee’s daughter and son have been chosen as the Golden Globe ambassadors to assist with the awards ceremony.
The Hollywood Foreign Press Association announced Tuesday morning that Satchel and Jackson Lee will assume the ambassador roles for the 78th annual Golden Globes Awards in February.
Satchel, 26, and Jackson, 23, are the first siblings of color to hold the position. Jackson is the first Black male ambassador.
Both credited their maturation to their filmmaking father and mother, Tonya Lewis Lee, who is a film and television producer.
“We’re proud to carry our father’s legacy of storytelling to bring attention to communities close to our hearts,” said Satchel Lee, who was the creative director of DRØME, a queer and intersectional arts and culture magazine.
Satchel chose to partner with Callen-Lorde, an organization that helps with LGBTQIA+ communities with healthcare in New York City. Jackson is partnering with Big Brothers Big Sisters, the volunteer-supported mentoring network.
“As a visionary creative, my dad taught Satchel and me the importance of entertainment as a cultural catalyst of change,” he said.
Callen-Lorde and Big Brothers Big Sisters will each receive a grant from the HFPA for $25,000 made on the Lees’ behalf.
Satchel said selecting Callen-Lorde and the organization’s healthcare initiatives was important to her to “support the LGBT+ community, because that is my community. Everything I do, I just to give back to the people and communities that have given so much to me.”
Jackson said he picked Big Brothers Big Sisters in an effort to mentor those the same way his father guided him.
“Having my dad mentor me changed my life,” he said. “Being able to give someone else the opportunity and someone younger than me, it’s kind of paying it forward. It feels like a duty I have to do.”
An ambassador is traditionally the child of a celebrity who assists with award presentations, handing out trophies to winners and escorting them off stage.
Previous ambassadors include Pierce Brosnan’s sons Dylan and Paris Brosnan, Idris Elba’s daughter Isan Elba and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s daughter Simone Garcia.
The Golden Globes ceremony will be held Feb. 28 at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, California. The show honors achievements in film and television.
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NEW YORK: Chuck Norris’ manager says the “Walker, Texas Ranger” star was not present at last week’s deadly riot at the U.S. Capitol.
A photo of a man resembling Norris apparently with a member of the mob began trending online. “This is not Chuck Norris,” Norris manager Erik Kritzer told The Associated Press on Tuesday.
“Chuck remains on his range in Texas where he has been with his family,” Kritzer said. He acknowledged that the man photographed looked somewhat like Norris but “Chuck is much more handsome.”
“Walker, Texas Ranger,” in which Norris played karate-kicking lawman Cordell Walker, ran on CBS from 1993 to 2001. In 2016, he announced his support for President Donald Trump.