Martin Luther King Jr. has never been portrayed in a main role in a major motion picture before. Director Ava DuVernay figured that was long overdue, which is how the idea for her upcoming film “Selma” came to be.
Little did DuVernay, or anyone else for that matter, know that upon the film’s release (January 9, to be exact), the United States would find itself amidst a period of racial tensions in the US. It only makes it more relevant to revisit the life of Dr. King, especially a particular three-month period in which he led a campaign against voting inequality. We were able to catch up with DuVernay, as well as Oprah Winfrey, David Oyelowo, and other stars from the film, who described what releasing a film like “Selma” means in the present day.
