Colin Kaepernick’s Life to Become Netflix Series From Ava DuVernay
Colin Kaepernick’s life is officially getting the Hollywood treatment.
The Black NFL quarterback has announced that he has joined forces with film director Ava DuVernay for a Netflix series titled Colin in Black & White. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the scripted limited drama has been picked to go straight to series.
DuVernay’s six-episode series will take an intimate look at Kaepernick’s childhood, life in high school years, and all of the experiences that led him to become an activist today.
Kaepernick will appear in the series as himself and is set to narrate. An actor will play the younger version of Kaepernick. According to THR, “Emmy nominee Michael Starrbury will pen the script and serve as exec producer alongside DuVernay and Kaepernick. Starrbury previously teamed with DuVernay on Netflix’s Peabody-winning limited series When They See Us, based on the Central Park 5.”
Speaking about her decision to produce a film about the NFL player, DuVernay said that “With his act of protest, Colin Kaepernick ignited a national conversation about race and justice with far-reaching consequences for football, culture, and for him, personally. Colin’s story has much to say about identity, sports, and the enduring spirit of protest and resilience. I couldn’t be happier than to tell this story with the team at Netflix.”
Netflix says that the drama was conceived back in 2019 and scripts were completed this past May.
The series will look at Kaepernick’s early life as a Black child growing up in a white household that adopted him all while training to become a competitive quarterback while determining his own identity.
“Too often we see race and Black stories portrayed through a white lens,” Kaepernick told THR. “We seek to give new perspective to the differing realities that Black people face. We explore the racial conflicts I faced as an adopted Black man in a white community, during my high school years. It’s an honor to bring these stories to life in collaboration with Ava for the world to see.”
“We’re proud to bring Colin’s experience and his creative vision to life as he joins Ava to share his powerful story and message with all our members around the world,” Cindy Holland, VP originals at Netflix, told THRr. “It is an unparalleled union of two strong and defining voices coming together to tell the story about what it’s like to be Black in America.”
Kaepernick’s influence on the current BLM movement is expanding.
In 2016, the football player set out to protest racial injustice, police brutality, and systematic oppression ahead of a San Francisco 49ers game by kneeling during the national anthem. His act of protest ultimately roused polarizing conversations amongst athletes, NFL officials, and fans. At the time President Trump demanded NFL team owners fire Kaepernick along with any other players who protested during the national anthem. Eventually, Kaepernick became a free agent in 2017 and filed a lawsuit against the NFL. He claimed that the organization and its owners had colluded to keep him out of the league.
In February, he signed a deal with Audible to create multiple projects, including for his upcoming memoir.
