A Father Seeks Justice For His Son's Murder in Trailer for Nate Parker’s Upcoming Film AMERICAN SKIN
Writer, director, and actor Nate Parker (The Birth of a Nation) has created a new drama titled American Skin, and Vertical Entertainment has released the first trailer for it.
The movie centers on a Marine veteran named Lincoln “Linc” Jefferson (Parker), who wants justice for the death of his 14-year-old son after witnessing a police officer kill him. The cop ends up not being charged for murder, so Linc takes matters into his own hands.
The synopsis reads, “Nate Parker's film American Skin weaves a layered story in the tradition of Sidney Lumet's 12 Angry Men and Dog Day Afternoon, that follows a Black Iraqi War Vet, who after being denied of a fair trial following the shooting death of his teenage son (and only child) by a white police officer, desperately seeks justice and accountability for his son's death.”
Parker talked about the film in an interview with Deadline saying:
“In 2014, following the death of Michael Brown, I traveled to Ferguson, Missouri to stand against the overt domestic terrorism I saw spreading like a virus throughout our country. My hope was both to amplify calls for justice, while seeking a better understanding of the tensions between law enforcement and men and women of color. The most tragic moment of this trip arrived when I stood downtown between two infuriated groups of citizens. From one side came yells of ‘Justice for Mike Brown’ and on the other ‘Support Our Police’. It became even more clear to me, the disconnect in our collective understanding of citizenship, law enforcement, and our responsibility to preserve American Black lives. This trip and subsequent killings developed in me a fire that manifested itself into the makings of this film American Skin.
“As an American citizen, father, brother, son and artist, I felt compelled to use my platform as a filmmaker to respond to this crisis in a way that could not only promote social equity, but initiate a global culture shift that can result in the preservation of lives. If saving one life is the only thing this film achieves, it will have served its core purpose.”
The movie is executive produced by Oscar-winner Spike Lee (BlacKkKlansman), and it also stars Omari Hardwick (Kick-Ass), Theo Rossi (Luke Cage), and Beau Knapp (Seven Seconds).
The film will be released next year in North America on Martin Luther King Day.