Oliver Stone walks away from MLK biopic because producers are ‘suffocating the man & the truth’
Director Oliver Stone was slated to spear-head a biopic on slain Civil Rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. But the movie creator recently announced that he will no longer sit at the helm of the production because producers wouldn’t approve his script that showed King’s flaws.
“Sad news. My MLK project involvement has ended. I did an extensive rewrite of the script, but the producers won’t go with it,” the Oscar-winning director of “JFK” and “Platoon,” tweeted Friday.
“The script dealt w/ issues of adultery, conflicts within the movement, and King’s spiritual transformation into a higher, more radical being,” he continued. “I’m told the estate & the ‘respectable’ black community that guard King’s reputation won’t approve it. They suffocate the man & the truth.”
Stone went on to add, “I wish you could see the film I would’ve made. I fear if ‘they’ ever make it, it’ll be just another commemoration of the March on Washington.”
Despite King’s significant impact on American history, Hollywood has yet to bring his story to the big screen. DreamWorks acquired the rights to King’s life in 2009. The film is slated to be produced by Stephen Speilberg, with Jamie Foxx taking on the role of King.
Thoughts on Stone’s departure from the film?
How do you feel about King’s legacy being portrayed as one without flaws?
Sound off below!
