Kerry Washington loses it over gripping mystery in American Son trailer

Kerry Washington makes a tearful plea for answers about her missing child in the gripping new trailer for Netflix’s upcoming movie adaptation of her stage play American Son.

The Kenny Leon-directed film — based on Christopher Demos-Brown’s theatrical production, which Washington also led — takes place entirely in the holding area of a South Florida police station while a brutal storm rages outside. Washington plays Kendra Ellis-Connor, a psychology professor desperately searching for her missing son, while the presence of her estranged husband (Steven Pasquale) — as well as two police officers (Supergirl’s Jeremy Jordan, Eugene Lee) — further complicates the situation.

After the clip opens on a tense back-and-forth between Washington and Jordan, Pasquale’s arrival sends the scenario into an emotional spiral, as Kendra accuses her partner of contributing to their son’s disappearance: “You’re the one who disappeared from his life. You walked out on him,” she says after casting doubt on the officer’s innocence in the matter, too.

“This character is like the un-Olivia Pope,” the Scandal actress previously told EW of the role’s stark contrast from her beloved character on the beloved ABC drama she fronted for seven seasons. “She was such a huge challenge for me as an actress to spend seven or eight years playing somebody and then try to have the pendulum swing in the total opposite direction. She is not — there is no Prada in this one folks, sorry.”

“She’s grappling with relationships in a really different way,” the 42-year-old added. “She’s super open and vulnerable and we meet her at a point in her life where she’s really changing who she is.”

American Son debuts Nov. 1 on Netflix. Watch the film’s full trailer above.

Netflix
Netflix

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