‘One Night in Miami’ Official Trailer: Regina King Is Back in the Oscar Race, This Time as Director

Jude Dry
·2 min read
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Amazon has released the official trailer for its big awards contender “One Night in Miami,” the directorial debut of Oscar- and Emmy-winning actress Regina King. The fall festival hit has been sparking heat since its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival. The film went on to play the Toronto International Film Festival, where it was runner-up for the People’s Choice Award, often an early indicator of Oscar favorites. King is being floated as a potential Best Director nomination; each of the four main actors are also contenders for various performance nods.

Here’s the official synopsis: “On one incredible night in 1964, four icons of sports, music, and activism gathered to celebrate one of the biggest upsets in boxing history. When underdog Cassius Clay, soon to be called Muhammad Ali, (Eli Goree), defeats heavy weight champion Sonny Liston at the Miami Convention Hall, Clay memorialized the event with three of his friends: Malcolm X (Kingsley Ben-Adir), Sam Cooke (Leslie Odom Jr.) and Jim Brown (Aldis Hodge). ‘One Night In Miami’ is a fictional account inspired by the historic night these four formidable figures spent together. It looks at the struggles these men faced and the vital role they each played in the civil rights movement and cultural upheaval of the 1960s. More than 40 years later, their conversations on racial injustice, religion, and personal responsibility still resonate.”

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IndieWire’s own Oscar prognosticator Anne Thompson predicts “One Night in Miami” will be a major player in the acting races: “Rising British thespian Kingsley Ben-Adir was expected to campaign for lead…because his Malcolm X dominates playwright-screenwriter Kemp Powers’ true 1964 story. But Amazon’s awards team is also slotting unknown Eli Goree as Cassius Clay in lead as well, which is a surprise. (Both actors command the most screen time.) That leaves in Supporting two better-known actors who have also never been Oscar-nominated: Aldis Hodge as football star Jim Brown, and ‘Hamilton’ star Leslie Odom, Jr. as singer Sam Cooke, who takes on Malcolm X in the movie’s central conflict and brings the movie to a surging emotional conclusion. Advantage: Odom, Jr.”

In addition to the four main actors, “One Night in Miami” also stars Joaquina Kalukango, Nicolette Robinson, Beau Bridges, and Lance Reddick.

Amazon Studios will release “One Night in Miami” in select theaters December 25, 2020 and on Prime Video January 15, 2021. Check out the official trailer below:

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