"Selma," as in Alabama, the place where segregation in the South was at its worst, leading to a march that ended in violence, forcing a famous statement by President Lyndon B. Johnson that ultimately led to the signing of the Voting Rights Act.
Acting
Oyelowo's King: flawed, exhausted, strategically brilliant.
Direction
DuVernay's marching sequences feel like war films.
Writing
King's marriage fights hit harder than any speech.
Director
Ava DuVernay
David Oyelowo
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Carmen Ejogo
Coretta Scott King
Tom Wilkinson
President Lyndon B. Johnson
Giovanni Ribisi
Lee White
Tim Roth
Gov. George Wallace
André Holland
Andrew Young
Colman Domingo
Ralph Abernathy
Common
James Bevel
Stephan James
John Lewis
Omar J. Dorsey
James Orange
LaKeith Stanfield
Jimmie Lee Jackson
Oprah Winfrey
Annie Lee Cooper
Tessa Thompson
Diane Nash
Cuba Gooding Jr.
Fred Gray
Ruben Santiago-Hudson
Bayard Rustin
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
DuVernay rewrote the script overnight when the King estate refused speech rights, creating original sermons that feel authentic.
The LBJ portrayal sparked controversy; historians debated whether he was reluctant ally or fully committed partner before Selma's violence forced action.
US
GB
