The world premiere of “Emancipation,” a film by Antoine Fuqua, was hosted at Apple. Already being called “powerful” and a potential Oscar winner, the picture stars Will Smith as Peter, a slave who is desperate to escape. Deadline reports that the first private screening of the historical thriller Emancipation took place on Saturday, just in time for awards season. The video was shown during the 51st annual Legislative Conference of the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation in Washington, DC, thanks to a partnership between Apple Original Films (who won the rights to the film in a record-breaking auction) and the NAACP. Fuqua, the film’s director, and Smith, its star, were among the invited guests, along with a few other prominent members of the Black community. The Congressional Black Caucus, HBCUs, the Divine Nine (HBCU fraternities and sororities), the National Council of Negro Women, the National Coalition on Black Civic Participation, Power Rising, and #WinWithBlackWomen were all represented.
Though Apple has not announced a release date for the film as of yet, it is likely to be in theatres in time for award season. Before Smith was banned from the Academy for ten years for hitting Chris Rock at the Oscars (for which he publicly apologised in July), Emancipation was widely seen as a frontrunner. However, the jury should be able to overlook this occurrence and concentrate on the film’s actual content.
After the premiere, Smith addressed the press for the first time and discussed the significance of the picture. Many film roles have been offered to me during my career that involved slavery. “I never wanted to portray us like that, you know, and then this picture came along, and this is not a film about slavery,” Smith stated, being very honest with the audience about why he joined the project. To quote the film’s tagline: “This is a film about freedom. The theme of this film is perseverance. Faith is a major theme in this picture. It’s a movie about a guy’s feelings, the original “viral picture,” if you will. The film scripted by William N. Collage was inspired by the visual picture to which Smith refers. Photographed in 1863, ‘Beaten Peter,’ also known as Gordon, displays the extensive scarring on his back that he acquired from being whipped as a slave.
Smith stated that the image of Whipped Peter really impacted him since “cameras had just been produced” and the image had gone across the world as a rallying cry against slavery. Says director Antoine Fuqua, “This is a narrative that grew and flowered in my heart, and I wanted to be able to bring it to you in a manner that only Antoine Fuqua could.”
Social media users have expressed their approval of the video, emphasising its significance to the Black community. NAACP President and CEO Derrick Johnson tweeted, “I had the pleasure of witnessing the film #Emancipation and can’t begin to convey how profound this is for OUR community and OUR history.” It’s a tale of hardship overcome, love won, and ultimate success. The world is better because of Antoine Fuqua and Will Smith. Many of the viewers at the showing agree with his assessment. “#Emancipation is a tremendous tale not just anchored in our past, but also in our resiliency as a people,” wrote Angela T. Rye. A heartfelt “thank you” to @willsmith, @AntoineFuqua, and @AppleTVplus for making films that matter. Peter’s struggle to break free is the subject of Emancipation. Peter (Smith) survives a near-fatal beating and flees to the Louisiana swamps, where he hopes to be safe from the slavers who pursued him. Mustafa Shakir (as Andre Cailloux), Ben Foster (Fassel), Steven Ogg (Sergeant Howard), Charmaine Bingwa (Dodienne), Imani Pullam (Betsy), Gilbert Owuor (Gordon), and Aaron Clifton Moten (as Moten) all appear with Smith (Knowles).
In 2023, we’ll see the debut of Emancipation.