Having directed the powerful drama “Blood Diamond,” Edward Zwick is back with another impactful film, “Trial By Fire,” which premiered at last year’s Telluride Film Festival. It’s both a heartbreaking and heartfelt story of injustice and human connection.
Based off David Grann’s 2009 essay in The New Yorker of the same name, the story follows the tragic story of Cameron Todd Willingham who was convicted and executed for the murder of his three young children by arson after original evidence was claimed doubtful. He forms an unlikely bond with Elizabeth Gilbert, a Texas housewife, who fights for his freedom on the basis he was wrongly convicted. For those who’ve already read Grann’s piece know how compellingly it was fleshed out on print and in real life. And with that, it made it an attractive and essential story for the screen, which is why Zwick chased Grann’s story after it was published almost 9 years ago.
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“The story was all there, with these two compelling characters,” he told Deadline. “It is a remarkable story about people. Not just capital punishment but justice, which is a very important word right now. It has to have that pull to keep you pushing it up the hill this many years.”
Involved in and passionate about social justice, Zwick teamed up with Alex Soros, a philanthropist, who funded the film. They met through environmental and human rights organization, Global Witness, after the director completed “Blood Diamond.”
The film is led by actors who’ve certainly made their marks in emotional and impactful dramas. It stars Jack O’Connell, who was front and center in Angelina Jolie’s “Unbroken,” as Willingham and Laura Dern, who has been critically lauded for her roles in HBO’s “Big Little Lies” and “The Tale,” as Gilbert. Fingers crossed that the two will bring noteworthy performances and chemistry that will do this important story justice.
Starring alongside the two are Stacy Meade as Willingham’s wife, Stacy, and Jeff Perry as the chemist and fire investigator who finds flawed evidence in the original case.
“Trial By Fire” hits theaters on May 17.