The true story of William Wilberforce and his courageous quest to end the British slave trade. Along the way, Wilberforce meets intense opposition, but his minister urges him to see the cause through.
Acting
Albert Finney's John Newton steals every scene with one milky eye.
Writing
Dialogue that makes democracy sound like actual combat.
Director
Michael Apted
Ioan Gruffudd
William Wilberforce
Romola Garai
Barbara Spooner
Benedict Cumberbatch
William Pitt
Albert Finney
John Newton
Michael Gambon
Lord Charles Fox
Rufus Sewell
Thomas Clarkson
Youssou N'Dour
Olaudah Equiano
Ciarán Hinds
Lord Tarleton
Toby Jones
Duke of Clarence
Nicholas Farrell
Henry Thornton
Sylvestra Le Touzel
Marianne Thornton
Jeremy Swift
Richard the Butler
Stephen Campbell Moore
James Stephen
Bill Paterson
Lord Dundas
Nicholas Day
Sir William Dolben
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
The real Wilberforce took 18 years to pass his bill; the film condenses this but keeps the 1791, 1792, 1793, 1797, 1798, 1799, 1804, 1805, and 1806 defeats. Exhausting just to type.
Released during the 200th anniversary of the actual abolition, this was essentially Britain's self-congratulatory moment—conveniently forgetting they compensated slave owners, not the enslaved.
US
