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David Oyelowo as Martin Luther King Jr. in ‘Selma’. Photo: Paramount Pictures.
Martin Luther King Jr. Day is on January 19th and there have been many documentaries, movies and TV shows made about the iconic civil rights leader.
From films like director Ana DuVernay’s ‘Selma’, to documentaries like 2018’s ‘I Am MLK Jr.’, to mini-series like season 4 of ‘Genius’ entitled ‘MLK/X’, there are plenty of movies and TV shows to watch to learn more about King’s life and contributions.
“One dream can change the world.”
Release Date: Jan 9, 2015
Run Time: 2 hr 8 min
Budget: $20,000,000
In honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Moviefone is counting down the 15 best movies and TV shows about the civil rights leader, his family and his legacy.
Let’s begin!
Related Article: Kelvin Harrison Jr. and Aaron Pierre Talk Anthology Series ‘Genius: MLK/X’
1999’s ‘Selma, Lord, Selma’. Photo: Walt Disney Television.
In 1965 Alabama, an 11 year old girl (Jurnee Smollett) is touched by a speech by Martin Luther King, Jr. and becomes a devout follower. But her resolution is tested when she joins others in the famed march from Selma to Montgomery.
A powerful drama of soaring ambition and shattered dreams that takes a provocative insider’s look at the way the USA goes to war—as seen from inside the LBJ (Michael Gambon) White House leading up to and during the Vietnam War.
“He promised peace, but chose war.”
Run Time: 2 hr 45 min
Budget: $17,000,000
A chronicle of the final chapters of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s life, revealing a conflicted leader who faced an onslaught of criticism from both sides of the political spectrum.
“When his dream for American became a nightmare”
Documentary film about the life and trials of the Reverend Martin Luther King Sr. (“Daddy King”), father of civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr.
Release Date: Jan 15, 2016
Run Time: 1 hr 47 min
‘Bringing King to China’ is a father’s “love letter” to his adult daughter, a young American woman struggling to bring Martin Luther King, Jr.’s dream of nonviolence to China, and then back to the United States.
Release Date: Jan 1, 2011
Run Time: 1 hr 25 min
(L to R) Anthony Mackie as Martin Luther King Jr. and Bryan Cranston as President Lyndon B. Johnson in ‘All the Way’. Photo: HBO Films.
Lyndon B. Johnson’s (Bryan Cranston) amazing 11-month journey from taking office after JFK’s assassination, through the fight to pass the 1964 Civil Rights Act and his own presidential campaign, culminating on the night LBJ is actually elected to the office – no longer the ‘accidental President.’
Every year, hundreds of children from pre-K through 12th grade take the stage at the Oakland MLK Oratorical Fest, a public speaking competition where they perform poetry and speeches inspired by the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. The film covers the months leading up to the 40th annual festival, as schools across the city send their top-placing students to compete. It is a portrait of young people raising their voices about issues they care about and of the unique community that celebrates and supports them.
Release Date: Feb 18, 2020
Run Time: 58 min
This feature documentary deeply explores Dr. King, his experience, his legacy and the Movement at large through key events – The Montgomery Bus Boycott, The Birmingham Campaign, March on Washington, the Selma Movement and Assassination and Legacy.
Release Date: Apr 4, 2018
Run Time: 1 hr 31 min
‘Our Friend, Martin’ is a 1999 animated children’s educational film about Martin Luther King, Jr. and the American civil rights movement. Two friends travel through time, meeting Dr. King at several points during his life. It featured an all-star voice cast and was nominated for an Emmy award in 1999 for Outstanding Animated Program.
Constructed from a wealth of archival footage, the documentary follows Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. from 1955 to 1968, in his rise from regional activist to world-renowned leader of the Civil Rights movement. Rare footage of King’s speeches, protests, and arrests are interspersed with scenes of other high-profile supporters and opponents of the cause, punctuated by heartfelt testimonials by some of Hollywood’s biggest stars.
Release Date: Mar 24, 1970
Run Time: 3 hr 5 min
Kelvin Harrison Jr. as Martin Luther King Jr. in ‘Genius: MLK/X.’ Photo: National Geographic/Richard DuCree.
The fourth season chronicles the lives of Martin Luther King Jr. (Kelvin Harrison Jr.) and Malcolm X (Aaron Pierre).
“Martin Luther King Jr / Malcolm X. Two minds, one movement.”
Air Date: April 25th, 2017
Networks:
Based on newly declassified files, the film explores the US government’s surveillance and harassment of Martin Luther King, Jr.
Release Date: Jan 15, 2021
Run Time: 1 hr 44 min
The widows of Martin Luther King (Angela Bassett) and Malcolm X (Mary J. Blige) and how they carry on as single mothers after the assassination of their husbands.
“Together they kept the dream alive.”
Release Date: Feb 2, 2013
Run Time: 1 hr 30 min
This made-for-TV movie dramatizes the historic boycott of public buses in the 1950s, led by civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (Jeffrey Wright).
“The Story of Martin Luther King and One Act of Defiance That Changed a Nation”
Release Date: Feb 24, 2001
Run Time: 1 hr 58 min
1. ‘Selma’ (2015)
(Center) David Oyelowo as Martin Luther King Jr. in ‘Selma’. Photo: Paramount Pictures.
‘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 (Tom Wilkinson) that ultimately led to the signing of the Voting Rights Act. David Oyelowo plays Martin Luther King Jr.
“One dream can change the world.”
Release Date: Jan 9, 2015
Run Time: 2 hr 8 min
Budget: $20,000,000
