We love Ava DuVernay. In addition to making one of our favourite films of 2015, the American filmmaker has been a commanding voice of reason in the ongoing debate around racial inequality in Hollywood ever since she launched the African-American Film Festival Releasing Movement back in 2010. She is also, along with Creed director Ryan Coogler, set to miss this Sunday’s Oscars ceremony in order to attend a charity event raising awareness for the predominantly black community that has been affected by the water crisis in Flint, Michigan.
Now, Deadline is reporting that DuVernay has signed on to direct Madeline L’Engle’s 1963 fantasy novel ‘A Wrinkle in Time’ for Disney. Which is exciting and somewhat surprising news, given that DuVernay recently passed on another big studio project, Marvel’s Black Panther – a gig which eventually went to Coogler.
‘A Wrinkle in Time’ centres on a young girl who crosses into alternate dimensions in search of her missing father, encountering a variety of weird and wonderful creatures along the way. The potential for this live action adaptation is huge, especially with Frozen’s Jennifer Lee providing the script, but whatever the outcome it’s certainly an interesting career move for the Selma director. Given how well her other forthcoming project, the sci-fi thriller Intelligent Life, is shaping up, we’ve no reason to believe DuVernay will deliver anything less than spectacular.
Published 24 Feb 2016
By Ashley Clark
The news that Joseph Fiennes, a white British actor, will play the King of Pop is as perplexing as it is insulting.
From Body and Soul to Creed, the sports movie has a rich tradition of raising awareness around issues of class and race.