Asomugha’s latest film raises bar
‘Crown Heights’ a weightier piece
Nnamdi Asomugha never thought he’d actually become an actor. Sure, like many young boys, he dreamed of success as a professional athlete or an entertainer.
But he was also the son of Nigerian parents who migrated to the United States in the 1970s. They had two very different career paths in mind: doctor or lawyer. “And actually, those are the only two professions on the planet,” he said with a laugh, repeating his parents’ early admonition.
Now, after a decade of a professional football career before retiring in 2013, Asomugha is making moves to establish himself as a Hollywood power player in front of and behind the camera. As a star and producer of “Crown Heights,” the former player for the Oakland Raiders, Philadelphia Eagles and San Francisco 49ers is following a long line of athletes extending their careers far beyond the 50-yard line.
“Thank God I was successful (in football) because now my mom is like, ‘I have faith in you,’ ” he said.
“Crown Heights,” which won the audience award at this year’s Sundance Film Festival and was acquired by Amazon Studios, chronicles the true story of Colin Warner (Lakeith Stanfield), who was wrongfully convicted of murder in 1980 and sentenced to a minimum of 15 years in jail. His best friend, Carl King, played by Asomugha, devoted 20 years of his life to proving his innocence. (Warner was exonerated in 2001.)
The movie is scheduled to open Friday in Milwaukee.
Such a weighty film is a far cry from Asomugha’s first major Hollywood gig.
On the set of a Nike commercial, the director left him with a bit of advice:
“‘I want to tell you that I do this all the time and you are gifted at this,’ ” Asomugha recalled the director saying. “‘So whenever you’re done (with football), I think you should pursue this and take lessons.’
“I just thought it was nice of him,” Asomugha said of the notes. Three months later, Asomugha got a call from his agent saying that same director wanted him in his television show.
The director was Peter Berg. The show was “Friday Night Lights.” Asomugha ultimately appeared in a guest role on the Season 4 premiere.
“I tell people all the time that football taught me about life in every single aspect,” he said. “The leadership qualities that you have to have to be a producer on a film is something I learned being a captain on the team. Then, the amount of preparation it took to be successful at football ... seeing that, going through it and knowing the process and being able to bring that to acting has been very beneficial for me because I prepare in a very similar way.”
Asomugha is using his name and connections to tell stories that resonate with him. And at the core of his small but mighty brand — which spans executive producer credits on “Beasts of No Nation,” the short documentary “Waiting for Hassana” and a forthcoming Harriet Tubman film — is identity.
“It’s so crazy. That’s not intentional, but I’ve realized there is this theme in all of them,” he said. “Where do I fit in the world? Where do I fit in time? I didn’t know I was gravitating toward those stories.”