Sam Rockwell has been cast opposite Taraji P. Henson in The Best of Enemies
Sam Rockwell (Moon) is set to play a Ku Klux Klan leader in the upcoming film The Best of Enemies, according to Variety. He’ll star opposite Taraji P. Henson (Empire), who plays a civil rights activist in the film. The Best of Enemies will be directed by Robin Bissell, who was an executive producer on The Hunger Games and Seabiscuit. Bissell is making his directorial debut. He also adapted the script from Osha Gray Davidson’s book “The Best of Enemies: Race and Redemption in the New South.”
Henson will play Ann Atwater, “a civil rights activist in Durham, N.C., who battled KKK leader C.P. Ellis for a decade until 1971, when the two agreed to co-chair a two-week community meeting to deal with a court-ordered school desegregation decree. That event changed both of their lives immeasurably.” The cast also includes Babou Ceesay (Rogue One), who will play Bill Riddick who convinced Ellis and Atwater to try to reach a compromise. Also cast in The Best of Enemies are Anne Heche, Wes Bentley, Bruce McGill, Nick Searcy, and John Gallagher Jr. Production will begin in Atlanta on May 22 for Fred Beernstein’s Astute Films. The film is produced by Danny Strong (Empire), Tobey Maguire, Matthew Plouffe, Bernstein, Matt Berenson, Bissell and Dominique Telson. Rick Jackson and Jeremiah Samuels will executive produce.
Rockwell is known for his work in films like Moon, Confessions of a Dangerous Mind, The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, The Green Mile, Choke and Galaxy Quest. He’s the voice of Mortimer Ramsey in the video game Dishonored 2, the voice of Vic in the TV series F is for Family, and has appeared as Bugsy Siegel on the series Drunk History.
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(Photo Credit: Adela Loconte/WireImage)
