Academy Award winner and American Crime creator John Ridley is set to helm a film about the 1992 Los Angeles riots.
The riots, which commenced in April of that year and lasted over the course of five days, were a pivotal moment in American history sparked by the acquittal of four white LAPD officers in the brutal beating of Rodney King.
The riots inflicted an estimated $1 billion in property damage and resulted in the deaths of 50 people.
The film will tell the story through the eyes of several key figures involved in the riots.
Gabriel and Daniel Hammond, Broad Green Pictures CEO and chief creative officer, said the following in a statement:
“This is a seminal event in our country’s history, the reverberations of which are still far too relevant today. We were blown away by John’s amazing screenplay and we know that under his direction and the aegis of Imagine the film will be truly incredible. This is why we started this company. To make movies like this.”
Production on the untitled film is set to begin this upcoming spring.
Given today’s racial climate (the Black Lives Matter movement, extrajudicial killings of black Americans, etc.), this film could not be more timely.
[via Deadline]
