David Oyelowo and Russell Crowe are set to star in Arc of Justice, based on a famous civil rights case from the 1920s.
Per Variety, Oyelowo has closed a deal to star in the film while Crowe is in talks and close to finalizing his deal. The film will be directed by Narcos‘ Jose Padilha for the Mark Gordon Company and is primarily based on a book of the case, Arc of Justice: A Saga of Race, Civil Rights and Murder in the Jazz Age by Kevin Boyle.
The film will explore the case of Ossian Sweet, an African American doctor in Detroit who stood trial for murder and was defended by Clarence Darrow for the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. Oyelowo will play Sweet with Crowe up for the role of Darrow.
Arc of Justice‘s script was written by Max Borenstein and Rodney Barnes. Gordon, Borenstein, Hawk Koch and Matt Jackson will produce the film while Josh Clay Phillips will oversee the production for the Mark Gordon Company.
Crowe will next be seen in this summer’s The Mummy and Oyelowo will be seen in this fall’s God Particle, the next film set in the Cloverfield franchise.
Originally published May 9, 2017. Updated April 15, 2018.
