Will Smithis making his return to acting following hisOscars controversy in March.
Set in Louisiana during the American Civil War, Smith portrays Peter, a man who escapes slavery and sets out on a quest for freedom.
The trailer begins with Peter saying, “I heard it myself— slaves are free.”
From there, he embarks on a triumphant journey following the “sounds of Abraham [Lincoln]’s cannons.”
In one scene, as he and a fellow slave attempt their escape, they are faced with the dangerous swamps of Louisiana. “There are many ways to die in a swamp,” the companion says in the trailer, to which Peter replies, “There are many ways to die here.”
Peter is then seen running from merciless dogs and soldiers, in addition to taking on the deadly Louisiana swamps, as he sets his sights on being a free man.
“I will look in triumph at my enemies,” Peter says at the end of the trailer as he looks up at the sky.
Smith then called the photo a “rallying cry against slavery,” and one that inspired a film that he says he wanted to be part of in “a way that only Antoine Fuqua could deliver.” Fuqua has directed award-winning movies over the course of his career, includingTraining DayandThe Equalizer.
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Smith has kept a relatively low profile sincethe Oscarsin March, when he slapped Rock over a joke the comedian made about his wife Jada — who lives with alopecia — and her shaved head.
Will Smith; Chris Rock.Will Smith/Youtube; MediaPunch/Shutterstock
After he slapped Rock, and won Best Actor not too soon after, Smithresigned from the Academyof Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and was eventuallybanned from attending Academy eventsfor a decade. He has sinceapologized multiple times for his actions.
“I was out of line and I was wrong,” hesaid in a public apologyto Rock in July on his social media platforms. “I am embarrassed and my actions were not indicative of the man I want to be. There is no place for violence in a world of love and kindness.”
source: people.com
