Judas and the Black Messiah
Judas and the Black Messiah is a 2021 American biographical crime drama film directed and produced by Shaka King, who wrote the screenplay with Will Berson, based on a story by the pair and Kenny and Keith Lucas. The film is about the betrayal of Fred Hampton (played by Daniel Kaluuya), chairman of the Illinois chapter of the Black Panther Party in the late-1960s Chicago, by William O'Neal (played by LaKeith Stanfield), an FBI informant. Jesse Plemons, Dominique Fishback, Ashton Sanders, Darrell Britt-Gibson, Lil Rel Howery, Algee Smith, Dominique Thorne, and Martin Sheen also star.
Judas and the Black Messiah
- Will Berson
- Shaka King
- Will Berson
- Shaka King
- Kenny Lucas
- Keith Lucas
- Charles D. King
- Ryan Coogler
- Shaka King
Kristan Sprague
- February 1, 2021 (Sundance)
- February 12, 2021 (United States)
126 minutes
- United States
- Canada
English
$26 million[1]
A Fred Hampton biopic had been in the works for several years, with the Lucas brothers and Will Berson writing and shopping screenplays individually since 2014. Berson's version almost got made with F. Gary Gray directing, but King was hired to direct when that fell through. The cast joined in 2019, with the blessings of Hampton's family, with filming beginning that fall in Ohio.
Judas and the Black Messiah premiered at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival on February 1, 2021, and was released in the United States by Warner Bros. Pictures on February 12, simultaneously in theaters and digitally on HBO Max. Released amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the film grossed $7 million worldwide against a budget of $26 million. The film was acclaimed by critics, who praised King's direction, the cinematography, the screenplay, the performances (particularly Kaluuya, Stanfield, and Fishback), and its timely themes.
Judas and the Black Messiah earned six Oscar nominations at the 93rd Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Supporting Actor for both Kaluuya and Stanfield, with the former winning, and Best Original Song ("Fight for You"). For his performance, Kaluuya also won Best Supporting Actor at the Golden Globes, Critics' Choice Awards, Screen Actors Guild Awards, and BAFTA Awards. Since then, it has been cited as one of the best films of the 2020s and the 21st century.[4][5]
Plot[edit]
In 1968, 19-year-old petty criminal William O'Neal is arrested in Chicago after attempting to steal a car while posing as a federal officer. He is approached by FBI Special Agent Roy Mitchell, who offers to have O'Neal's charges dropped if he works undercover for the bureau. O'Neal is assigned to infiltrate the Illinois chapter of the Black Panther Party (BPP) and its leader, Fred Hampton.
O'Neal begins to grow close to Hampton, who works to form alliances with rival gangs and militia bands while extending community outreach through the BPP's Free Breakfast for Children Program. Hampton's persuasive oratory skills eventually help to form the multiracial Rainbow Coalition along with the Young Lords and Young Patriots Organization. Hampton also falls in love with Deborah Johnson, a fellow BPP member. O'Neal begins to relay intel to Mitchell, who in return compensates him with money.
After Hampton is arrested and imprisoned for allegedly stealing $71 worth of ice cream bars, O'Neal begins to rise through the ranks and is promoted to security captain. When a shootout between the Chicago Police and the BPP occurs at the chapter office, O'Neal sneaks out as the police bomb the office. Outraged that he could have been killed himself, O'Neal attempts to quit being an informant, but Mitchell refuses.
Three months later, Hampton is released from prison while appealing his charges and he reunites with Deborah, now pregnant with his child. BPP member Jimmy Palmer, who was hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries after being shot by a police officer, dies unexpectedly while being transferred to another hospital. Assuming police have murdered Jimmy, fellow member Jake Winters engages in a shootout with police, killing several officers before being gunned down himself.
After Hampton's appeal is rejected, FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover orders Hampton be "neutralized" before he returns to prison. Mitchell corners O'Neal into helping with the plan by warning him that the BPP will retaliate against him if they find out he's an informant, and O'Neal reluctantly agrees to help. O'Neal is later handed a vial of sedatives and ordered to drug Hampton's drink with it by another undercover FBI collaborator, who hands O'Neal his old fake FBI badge. The next evening, BPP members gather at Hampton's apartment before he must depart for prison. An allied gang leader offers Hampton money to flee the country, but he turns it down and instead orders a clinic to be established with the money under Jake's name. As the evening progresses, O'Neal reluctantly drugs Hampton's drink and departs soon after. Hours later, officers and agents raid the apartment and assassinate Hampton after shooting or injuring the other Black Panthers, while Deborah is arrested. Later, O'Neal meets with Mitchell, who gives him money and a pair of keys to a gas station he now owns. O'Neal attempts to quit again but reluctantly accepts the money and keys and puts them in his pocket.
Archive footage is shown of Hampton's speeches, including his funeral procession, and an interview O'Neal gave in 1989.[6] The title cards state that O'Neal continued to work as an informant within the BPP before committing suicide in 1990. A lawsuit was filed against the FBI in 1970 and 12 years later was settled for $1.85 million. As of the film's release, Fred Hampton Jr. and his mother serve as chairman and board member of the Black Panther Party Cubs.
Release[edit]
Judas and the Black Messiah had its world premiere at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival on February 1, 2021 at both virtual and in-person screenings.[26] The film was released on February 12, 2021, in the United States, by Warner Bros. Pictures.[27] The film was originally scheduled to be released on August 21, 2020,[28] but because of the COVID-19 pandemic, it was postponed to 2021.[29][30]
As part of its plans for all of its 2021 films, Warner Bros. Pictures also streamed the film simultaneously on the HBO Max service for a period of one month, after which the film played exclusively in theatres until the start of the normal home media release schedule period.[31] Samba TV reported that 653,000 households streamed the film over its opening weekend.[32] By the end of its first month, the film had been watched in over 1.4 million U.S. households.[33] The film was re-added to HBO Max on July 1, 2021.
Reception[edit]
Box office[edit]
Judas and the Black Messiah grossed $5.4 million in the United States and Canada, and $1.4 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $7 million.[3]
Compared to Land with limited expansion of Willy's Wonderland and The Mauritanian, Judas and the Black Messiah made $2.5 million from 1,888 theaters over its four-day opening weekend, finishing second at the box office behind holdover The Croods: A New Age.[34] About 61% of the audience was African-American and 21% Caucasian, while male/female split evenly and 75% were above the age of 25.[35] In its second weekend the film finished third, dropping 55% to $905,000, then made $500,000 in its third weekend.[36][37] The weekend following its six Oscar nominations, the film made $250,000 from 951 theaters, for a domestic running total of $5 million.[38]
