Regina King is unstoppable. The Oscar-winning veteran actress is fresh off her successful stint as Watchmen’s Sister Night, which led to a recent Emmy nomination. Now, she’s showing her power behind the camera too. Deadline reports that Amazon Studios secured the rights to Regina King’s directorial debut One Night in Miami.
The film is based on Kemp Powers 2013 stage play about the early years of Cassius Clay, later known as Muhammad Ali. One Night in Miami takes place on February 25, 1964, following Clay’s new title as World Heavyweight Boxing Champion. Many flood the streets to celebrate his victory over Sonny Liston. However, Clay cannot do the same due to segregation laws.
Amazon Studios
So, he goes to Hampton House Motel in one of Miami’s Black neighborhoods. Cassius links up with a few close (and famous) friends for some quality time. Clay, Malcolm X, football legend Jim Brown, and singer Sam Cooke engage in a night of reflection and conversation that changes their lives. It certainly sounds like a film that will dive into each person’s struggles and humanity outside of their well-know public personas.
In a press release, King spoke about her excitement over working with Amazon Studios. “Amazon’s enthusiasm for One Night in Miami is both humbling and exciting,” King said. “I am honored to have them as partners on my feature film directorial debut.”
Mark Hill/HBO
Head of Amazon Studios Jennifer Salke also spoke about the collaboration. Of course, she gave lots of praise to the One Night in Miami story as well as King’s incredible talent.
“One Night in Miami beautifully captures a significant moment in history when these great minds gathered and ultimately helped shape the conversation of what we know today as the civil rights movement,” said Salke. “Regina King is a force of nature – mastering her craft in front of the camera as we’ve seen in her extensive body of work, and now taking her talent behind the camera. We’re so proud to welcome Regina and Kemp to the Amazon family.”
One Night in Miami will release sometime in later 2020 in hopes of making awards cutoffs. Hopefully, that decision will pay off with even more accolades to add to Regina King’s resume.
Featured Image: Mark Hill/HBO
