THAT
(OSCAR) WINNING TEAM
 THE
GREAT DEBATERS
STARS:
Forest Whitaker, Denzel Washington
SUPPORTING PLAYERS:
Columbus Short, Collins Pennie, Emil Pinnock
DIRECTOR:
Denzel Washington
SCREENWITERS:
Robert Eisele, Suzan-Lori Parks
DISTRIBUTORS:
The Weinstein Company/MGM
For
decades, the movie industry did pitifully little to create opportunities
for black actors. Gradually, the situation improved, most conspicuously
when Sidney Poitier became the first African American to win an
Oscar as Best Actor (for his performance in 1963’s “Lilies
of the Field”). Then, following in Poitier’s Oscar path,
came Denzel Washington, Best Actor for “Training Day”
(2001); Halle Berry, Best Actress for “Monster’s Ball”
(2001); and Forest Whitaker, Best Actor for “The Last King
of Scotland” (2006). The latest good news is that Whitaker
and Washington will share screen time in “The Great Debaters,”
a true-life drama about a debating team from Wiley College in Texas
that went up against Harvard’s prestigious crew of debaters
in the 1930s. Washington plays Melvin B. Tolson, the tunnel-visioned
coach of the Texan team, and Whitaker plays the emotionally conflicted
father of one of Tolson’s students. Another sign of progress:
Washington, who made an impressive helming debut with “Antwone
Fisher” in 2002, will be sitting in the director’s chair.
Opening date to be announced.
TO READ ABOUT MORE
NEW FOREST WHITAKER AND DENZEL WASHINGTON FILMS, CLICK
HERE AND BROWSE THE "W" PAGE
OF STAR TURNS.
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