Jamie Foxx May Play Martin Luther King Jr. For Oliver Stone
Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. is one of the most important figures in twentieth century America, which makes it odd that he's yet to receive the cinematic bio-pic treatment. Now it looks like Oliver Stone will bring his story to the big screen, with 'The Amazing Spider-Man 2' star Jamie Foxx playing the famous civil rights leader.
The Hollywood Reporter says that Stone and Foxx are circling the untitled King biopic project with DreamWorks and Warner Brothers looking to finance the film. History suggests if this moves forward that black filmmakers will decry that Stone (who is white) is directing the film.
That said, there's no argument that Stone isn't one of the most famous (if not best) chroniclers of the tumultuous American history of the '60s and '70s. From his breakthrough film 'Platoon' to 'JFK' to 'Nixon,' Stone is at his best when he's digging into the period that obviously shaped him. Unfortunately the industry has had Stone making films about the modern age, and the trio of 'W.,' 'Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps' and 'Savages' suggest a less interesting filmmaker than the firebrand of two decades previous. Regardless, it's shocking it's taken this long for Hollywood to make a movie about King, and Foxx, who won an Oscar for 'Ray,' will no doubt do King justice.