Ava DuVernay To Tackle Central Park Five For Netflix
(Photo by Stephanie Moreno via Wikimedia Commons)
One of the most widely publicized crimes of the 1980s, the “Central Park jogger case” was a perfect storm of violence – both physical and systemic. A brutal assault, five wrongful convictions and a full-page ad paid for by Donald Trump are just some of the story’s highlights, a story that’s now going to be re-told by none other than Selma director Ava DuVernay.
The five-part series, each episode telling the tale of one of the five accused, sees DuVernay re-teaming with Netflix after the success of her Oscar-nominated documentary 13th. Here’s what the director had to say about her upcoming passion project per the Netflix press release:
“I had an extraordinary experience working with Netflix on ’13th’ and am overjoyed to continue this exploration of the criminal justice system as a narrative project with Cindy Holland and the team there. The story of the men known as Central Park Five has riveted me for more than two decades. In their journey, we witness five innocent young men of color who were met with injustice at every turn – from coerced confessions to unjust incarceration to public calls for their execution by the man who would go on to be the President of the United States.”
Unlike 13th, this new series will feature a scripted narrative, focusing on the five Harlem teens from their initial questioning in 1989 all the way until their various exonerations and settlements in 2014. That sounds like a significant deviation from the usual Netflix-binge model, but in the best way possible.
The yet-to-be-titled series arrives 2019. DuVernay is currently working on Disney’s A Wrinkle In Time, which hits theatres March 8th of next year.
