Media mogul Oprah Winfrey attended a special screening for the upcoming MLK Jr. biopic ‘Selma’ at the historic Castro Theatre in San Francisco recently.
Winfrey co-produced the highly anticipated film, which focuses on Martin Luther King Jr.’s historic 1965 march for voting rights.
[FLASHBACK: In Remembrance: Martin Luther King, Jr. (Rare Photos & Quotes)]
The film’s screening reportedly grew a standing ovation and Winfrey, who also appears in a small supporting role as protester Annie Lee Cooper, held a Q&A session with the films stars, where she revealed the challenges of being involved.??
One challenge? The Atlanta heat combined with the period wardrobe! Despite all of that, lady O gives credit to the film’s star David Oyewelo, who plays Martin Luther King, Jr. in the film, and his dedication to the project as “the reason I came on board,” Winfrey told the audience during a Q&A after the film’s premiere.
“David and I became fast friends when we did The Butler together and he told me that this had been his dream for a very long time.”
Oyewelo gives all the credit for turning the movie into a reality to the power combo of Winfrey and Brad Pitt, whose company Plan B also produced the film, stating:
“This is how you use power that has been afforded you,” Oyewelo said. “To get things done that otherwise wouldn’t be.”
More photos + watch the official ‘Selma’ trailer below…
Selma is a 2014 American drama film directed by Ava DuVernay and written by DuVernay and Paul Webb. The film is based on the 1965 Selma to Montgomery voting rights marches led by James Bevel, Hosea Williams, and Martin Luther King, Jr. of the SCLC and John Lewis of the SNCC.
Oprah explains in an E! Entertainment interview why she chose to appear as Anne Lee Cooper, a woman who had to fight for her right to vote.
“She was a woman who actually had tried to vote 4 or 5 times. Was not given the right to vote… and when the sheriff forbid everybody from coming down to the courthouse, she ended up getting into a big fight…”
VIDEO: Oprah Explains Why ‘Selma’ is her most important movie to date
The film stars David Oyelowo as King, Tom Wilkinson as President Lyndon Johnson, Common as Bevel, and Carmen Ejogo as Coretta Scott King.
VIDEO: Selma (Official Trailer) 2014
Selma, from Paramount Pictures, Path? and Harpo Films, hits select theaters on Christmas Day 2014 and opens nationwide Jan. 9, 2015.