In time for the 60th anniversary of the March on Washington, Barack and Michelle Obama's Higher Grounds and Netflix present Rustin, the story of one of the most famous yet most overlooked members of the American Civil Rights Movement.
Bayard Rustin was an advisor to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and was one of the architects of the 1963 March on Washington. He was also a gay man who suffered countless beatings and arrests to stand up for his beliefs.
Five-time Tony Award winner George C. Wolfe directs what's sure to be a modern classic starring Tony Award nominee and Emmy Award winner Colman Domingo. The story comes from Julian Breece with a screenplay from Breece and Academy Award winner Dustin Lance Black.
Here's what we know about Rustin.
Rustin release date
Rustin debuts in select theaters on November 3, 2023, and on Netflix on November 17, 2023. The theatrical release will allow the movie to be considered for award nominations in the 2023-2024 nomination cycle.
As a Netflix original movie, in order to watch the movie on the streaming platform you'll need a subscription and you'll find several options below.
As we get closer to the release date we can provide more information about whether the movie will be available in UK cinemas and when the UK premiere date on Netflix may be.
Rustin plot
Here's the official synopsis of Rustin from Netflix:
"The architect of 1963’s momentous March on Washington, Bayard Rustin was one of the greatest activists and organizers the world has ever known. He challenged authority, never apologized for who he was, what he believed, or who he desired. And he did not back down. He made history, and in turn, he was forgotten. Directed by DGA Award and five-time Tony Award winner George C. Wolfe and starring Emmy Award winner Colman Domingo, Rustin shines a long overdue spotlight on the extraordinary man who, alongside giants like the Reverend Martin Luther King Jr., Adam Clayton Powell Jr. and Ella Baker, dared to imagine a different world, and inspired a movement in a march toward freedom."
Rustin cast
The Rustin cast and crew are all incredibly talented multihyphenates.
Colman Domingo plays Bayard Rustin. Domingo is as comfortable on stage as he is in front of the camera, and he's just as talented behind the camera or penning a script. He's been busy the past few years, moving between projects like The Color Purple, Candyman, Fear the Walking Dead, Zola and Ma Rainey's Black Bottom. He recently voiced the character of Unicron in Transformers: Rise of the Beasts.
Take a look at the rest of the cast below:
- Tony Award nominee and Emmy Award winner Colman Domingo (Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, Zola, Euphoria) as Bayard Rustin
- Emmy and Grammy winner Chris Rock (Fargo, Untitled David O. Russell Project, Top Five) as Roy Wilkins
- Emmy winner Glynn Turman (Ma Rainey's Black Bottom, Fargo) as A. Philip Randolph
- Six-time Tony winner Audra McDonald (Respect, The Good Fight) as Ella Baker
- Tony, Emmy and Golden Globe winner Jeffrey Wright (Angels in America, Westworld) as Adam Clayton Powell Jr.
- Four-time Emmy nominee CCH Pounder (NCIS: New Orleans, The Shield) as Dr. Anna Hedgeman
- National Film Award nominee Aml Ameen (Yardie) as Martin Luther King Jr.
Who was Bayard Rustin?
The movie shines the spotlight on a man whose work was integral to the American Civil Rights Movement, but whose history has been overlooked. Netflix provided this short biography of Bayard Rustin in the press release:
"Born in 1912, Bayard Rustin was a visionary civil rights activist who was a close advisor to the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
"A staunch proponent of non-violent protest, in part due to his Quaker upbringing, Rustin was the driving force behind organizing the historic March on Washington in 1963. He worked with a number of groups through the years including serving as president of the A. Philip Randolph Institute, a civil rights organization in New York City, from 1966 to 1979. Of Rustin, King wrote to a colleague: 'We are thoroughly committed to the method of nonviolence in our struggle and we are convinced that Bayard’s expertness and commitment in this area will be of inestimable value.'
"Because he was a gay man who was forced to live with the constraints and prejudices of the time — including beatings and arrests — his role in the movement was not widely publicized and thus the true significance of his contribution has been muted. He received recognition in 2013 when he was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Obama."
Rustin trailer
You can watch the official trailer for Rustin below:
Watch the first teaser trailer for Rustin directly below:
Rustin director
George C. Wolfe is a Directors Guild of America award and five-time Tony Award winner. He's known for Ma Rainey's Black Bottom, The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, You're Not You, Nights in Rodanthe and Lackawanna Blues.
