Constellation chronicles the lives and loves of an African-American family in the deep South as they are forced to come to terms with a tumultuous past marked by an unrequited interracial affair. The film explores the way in which the family patriarch must confront his demons amidst the changing racial fabric of society and his own family.
Acting
Billy Dee Williams brings gravitas; young Zoe and Gabrielle already stars.
Writing
Messy family dynamics that refuse easy redemption arcs.
Director
Jordan Walker-Pearlman
Zoe Saldaña
Rosa Boxer
Billy Dee Williams
Helms Boxer
Gabrielle Union
Carmel Boxer
Lesley Ann Warren
Nancy
Hill Harper
Errol Hickman
Melissa De Sousa
Lucy Boxer
Rae Dawn Chong
Jenita
Ever Carradine
Celeste Korngold
David Clennon
Bear
Alec Newman
Kent
Shin Koyamada
Yosito
Howie Dorough
Alec (Cab Driver)
Jolene Andersen
Woman At Airport
Glenn Plummer
Man at Barbeque
Clarence Williams III
Forest Boxer
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
This was Zoe Saldaña's second leading film role, shot before she became Hollywood's go-to for sci-fi blockbusters. Director Jordan Walker-Pearlman is her cousin, making this a family affair in more ways than one.
Released in 2007 but set across decades, the film arrived when indie Black cinema was exploring historical trauma beyond slavery—think Eve's Bayou energy, but with less magic and more direct confrontation.
US
