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After playing Jackie Robinson (42) and James Brown (Get On Up), Chadwick Boseman wasn’t looking for another biopic. Yet he couldn’t resist the role of Thurgood Marshall in Marshall, in part because the script focuses on a racially charged case early in the future Supreme Court Justice’s career: Joseph Spell (Sterling K. Brown), a black chauffeur, is accused of sexually assaulting and trying to murder his boss Eleanor Strubing (Kate Hudson). Marshall, then an NAACP lawyer, is forced to depend on white attorney Sam Friedman (Josh Gad) after the judge forbids him to speak.
Below, Boseman previews his turn as the civil rights hero in Marshall.
ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: You’ve played James Brown, Jackie Robinson, and Black Panther. What draws you to playing these culturally significant black figures?
CHADWICK BOSEMAN: All of them were different situations. I think with Marshall, the difference in it is that I had already said I was not looking to play a real person and especially not an important real person, a famous real person. He could’ve been somebody [whose] story we didn’t know, or some character we dug up from history that we weren’t aware of. But, to play Thurgood Marshall was just not in my scope, not in my focus. I was convinced of it because of the script, and I was convinced of it because [director Reginald Hudlin] essentially kept talking to me about it and [producer] Paula Wagner kept talking to me about it.
The other thing that kept me from doing it is that I didn’t feel like I looked like the character, but they convinced me that this story was not about his whole life; it was more about this particular case. How he looked, which may be a factor in other iterations of his story, if it was a longer version, it didn’t matter as much in this one. So, I think it was all those factors that drew me specifically to this one. The other two [roles had] small things. It’s not like I’m necessarily looking for important black figures. Like James Brown, it just kept calling me at a certain point when I saying no; it was like James Brown was calling me himself. And Jackie Robinson, there was no way in the world I wasn’t going to do that. So, it was sought after not just by me but by a lot of people. They all were a little bit different in how they came to me.
What about the script attracted you to this film? Was it the fact that it was focusing on this one particular case?
Yeah, it was a more obscure case, and I felt like the banter between Marshall and Sam Friedman was really interesting and fun. It turned into a buddy movie as opposed to just a courtroom drama. It turned into a whodunit at certain moments, as well. I think it had a lot of flexibility in it to keep the audience interested, and I felt like it was a character I had not played before. I’m always looking for a challenge. Each one of these roles has been its own challenge. The thing I think I loved the most was the fact that he has to work this case without talking. He’s gagged. It’s like being a boxer, having one hand tied around your back. To quarterback this thing with another lawyer who is inexperienced was really interesting to me.
This movie does feel like a buddy comedy in places. Can you describe Marshall and Sam’s relationship?
Marshall is much more experienced than he is. So, he is in some ways a mentor to Sam, and he’s antagonistic toward [him] at times as well. I think it gets to the point where there’s a mutual respect because they’re on the same road, they’re fighting the same battles; they have a common enemy. But, I think for a greater part of the movie, Sam is gaining, and he has a need to gain it as well, Marshall’s respect for actually doing this, for actually battling it out in a courtroom. For a large part of the movie, it’s like if Thurgood could do this without him, he would. He definitely would do it without him. So, he’s a nuisance to him for at least half the movie. That makes for a lot of fun at the end of the day. You know, a lot of times you see movies now where the black guy is the sidekick. In this case, it’s switched where it’s not that Sam is a sidekick but he’s definitely not Batman in this situation. I think all of that allows us to look at ourselves and look at race and laugh at it in a certain way. Again, that part was the most fun, working with him, and also working with Sterling, even though our scenes weren’t as fun, but he’s a great actor as well.
Did you guys do anything to work on that chemistry together or was it there from day 1?
I think it was sort of there from the beginning. He’s a great actor, like I said, and I like bouncing off of actors who have the skill to do it, who have the skill to improv, who have the skill to play around. We listen to each other. I think it definitely grew as we went along as we continued to play together. [We] went out to eat with each other a few times. You get to know people that you work with. I don’t think it was like we tried to do anything extraordinary. It was just in the course of filming and being in Buffalo, New York, it’s not a whole lot to do, but finding those things to do in certain moments, it helps you.
What do you hope people take away from this movie after seeing it?
It’s an uplifting movie in a lot of ways. What I enjoy most is the two of them working together. That’s the important thing for us to see is that people who have different views can come to a point where they find what’s important and they work for that. I think that is the most of important thing to take away off the top of my head. And just the sense of who Thurgood Marshall was. He was once known as the Joe Lewis of the courtroom. I think of if you can get a sense of his courage and his willingness to fight yet believing in the system, actually, then you got what we were going for.
Directed by Reginald Hudlin, Marshall opens in theaters Oct. 13.
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by: J. K. Schmid Special to the AFRO / (Photo by J.K. Schmid) / August 2, 2017
Chadwick Boseman, star of films such as “42”, “Get on Up”, and “Captain America: Civil War”, recently sat for a Q&A about the meaning of superheroes at the Landmark Theater in Baltimore’s after a screening his next film, “Marshall.”
Actor Chadwick Boseman and director Reginald Hudlin talk “Marshall” and “Black Panther” at Landmark Harbor East. (Photo by J. K. Schmid)
Boseman, having already portrayed Black heroes such as Jackie Robinson, and James Brown, was asked to compare his recent role as the United States’ first Black Supreme Court Justice in “Marshall” and his upcoming role of T’Chall, King of Wakanda, in “Black Panther.” Specifically, which is the greater challenge, real or fictional heroes?
“They’re both intimidating,” Boseman said. “Maybe if I play something other than Black Panther, maybe I can answer that question. Yeah, I think that both are intimidating in their own way. That’s really the only answer that I can give you.”
The conversation, which was held during the NAACP’s annual convention July 22-26, was moderated by Roland Martin, Host and Managing Editor of News One Now, and also featured “Marshall” director and producer Reginald Hudlin.
“The beauty is that we have both,” Hudlin said. “I’m involved in both. You know when I wrote the Black Panther comic book, 10 years ago, there was no chance that movie would ever get made. But, this story has to be told, because if we can’t dream it, we can’t achieve it. Our greatest heroes are almost all outlaws: Martin Luther King, Malcolm X, they all spent time in jail-fighting for good-but, for us to go to the next level, we have to imagine ourselves running our own world. That’s what Black Panther is in Wakanda. And that’s what Thurgood Marshall is.”
Hudlin, an Academy Award-winning producer for “Django Unchained” and writer and director of “House Party,” developed, produced and wrote 2010’s “Black Panther” six episode TV series and is the author of the comic book arc where T’Challa marries Storm of the X-men.
Boseman was also asked by Martin what moved him to take on the role of a “real life superhero.”
“You can’t do anything in your day-to-day life as an American without bumping into the impact of Thurgood Marshall. So, I would say, if you were gonna put another face on Mount Rushmore, he is the person that makes the nation live up to its creed.”
“We have to go from fighting the power to being the power,” Hudlin said. “This is where we are as a culture and as a people so we have to celebrate that. So, I couldn’t be more happy that these two projects are happening right now. Because, we deserve it all. We deserve to celebrate our past, celebrate our triumph and be inspired to fulfill a future that may be beyond our imagination.”
“Marshall” is slated to be released Oct. 13. “Black Panther” is slated for release Feb. 16, 2018.
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Chadwick Boseman and I in front of the Thurgood Marshall statue in Baltimore.
Chadwick Boseman and I appeared at the NAACP convention in Baltimore to host a special preview of MARSHALL, who founded the NAACP Legal Defense Fund.
The journey begins with an arrival at the Thurgood Marshall Airport. Which, in my opinion, needs a statue of Thurgood.
Very exciting to the Marshall poster on display in a movie theater!
Chadwick charms the audience.
Modern day civil rights hero Marilyn Mosby talks about her impressions of the film.
Nick and Marilyn Mosby with myself and host Roland Martin after the screening.
Here’s a clip from the Q&A from an audience member.
NAACP’S Robin Harrison, Chadwick Boseman, Marilyn Mosby and Roland Martin after the screening.
The audience loved the trailer for the film.
Chadwick gave a brilliant and challenging speech in his keynote address at the closing of the NAACP convention.
The crowd burst into applause throughout.
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