Antoine Fuqua recently held a screening for his upcoming Apple TV+ film Emancipationwhich stars Will Smith as the real-life slave who famously posed for a photo published in Harper’s Weekly that showcased his horrifically scarred back (a crucial piece of compelling evidence for campaigns once morest slavery at the time), and everyone seems to have nothing but positive things to say regarding it. Entertainment Weekly quotes Derrick Johnsonhead of the NAACP, as saying that he “can’t begin to tell how powerful this is for OUR community and OUR history.” Smith also noted that he has turned down movies regarding slavery in the past, but that “this is not a film regarding slavery.” Instead, he says, “This is a film regarding freedom. This is a film regarding resilience. This is a film regarding faith.”
Deadline shared a trailer for the film and chatted with Fuqua regarding it, and while he stops short of saying that he thinks Emancipation is his best movie, he does admit that he said when he had finished that it’s his “strongest piece of work” and “certainly” his “most important” film. Apple seems to agree with that last bit, with Fuqua telling Deadline that the company “never stopped talking regarding releasing the film” even following Will Smith slapped Chris Rock at the Oscars and even following the whole production moved from Georgia to Louisiana.
It’s not hard to see why Apple didn’t want to let distractions sideline this project following watching the trailer, which is pretty heavy and leans really hard on what seems like a very intense performance from Will Smith—who, let’s not forget, also won the Best Actor Oscar earlier this year in addition to that other thing.
Emancipation opens in theaters on December 2 and will premiere on AppleTV+ on December 9.