Civil Rights activist and author James Baldwin is recognized as one of the great minds of American literature. And this couldn’t be more apparent than with the desire to explore his life and legacy on the big screen as Billy Porter (“Pose“) is behind an upcoming biopic that will chronicle Baldwin’s life in a feature film adaptation.
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We have an idea of who is going to be involved with this upcoming project on the creative side, as Variety is now reporting that Porter will produce, co-write, and star as the author in an untitled film that will be based on the 1994 novel “James Baldwin: A Biography” from Baldwin’s longtime friend and assistant, David Leeming. Porter will be working alongside Dan McCabe to put a script together. The pair have previously worked together on the original Peacock TV series “Fruits of Thy Labour.”
A black gay writer born in 1920’s Harlem, Baldwin would eventually author books such as “Go Tell It on the Mountain,” “Notes of A Native Son,” and “If Beale Street Could Talk.” He was also well-known for getting himself on television and debating his stances on the civil rights movement, along with taking down ridiculous bigoted arguments in real time with elegance. Baldwin’s work and interviews made him not only a cultural icon but the voice of many of those academics of the time that were simply dismissed because they weren’t white or not “white enough” for a society that looked down upon folks from the black community that were trying to educate the rest of America about the systematic and institutional racism that still plagued the country. Segregation was slowly being rolled-back with the civil rights movement gaining momentum and popularity, but there was still work to be done to win the hearts and minds of existing bigots that feared change.
There is certainly an audience for a biopic about Baldwin, and could end up doing well in awards season as well. Director Raoul Peck‘s documentary “I’m Not Your Negro” was Oscar-nominated, and Baldwin’s other literary work was adapted for features too, with the Barry Jenkins acclaimed film “If Beale Street Could Talk” landing actress Regina King a Best Supporting Actress statue. So, with that in mind, there could be some serious awards buzz surrounding this project, and finding the right director will be part of that magic formula. Porter has experience directing, so it wouldn’t be shocking if he took the director’s chair as well, but we’ll have to wait and see.
