Fresh on the heels of her Oscar for If Beale Street Could Talk and her acclaimed lead performance in the Watchmen television series, Regina King makes her feature directing debut with a drama that draws entertainment and activism, fame and principle, blend for one fantastic evening.
One Night in Miami imagines a night in February 1964, when real-life friends Cassius Clay, Jim Brown, Sam Cooke, and Malcolm X gather to celebrate Clay’s win over Sonny Liston, which made him the heavyweight champion of the world. Triumphant and playful, Clay (Eli Goree) — who’d soon take the name Muhammad Ali — is looking to party, but both he and football star Brown know that’s only a temporary escape from the civil rights abuses that limit the lives of even celebrated Black Americans.
Watch the trailer:
“Going into it, I knew how powerful these conversations were because, unfortunately, 60 years later what these men were talking about is being discussed now,” she told ET Canada.
Watch the Toronto International Film Festival Q&A below: