Chris Rock and Steven Spielberg to collaborate on adaptation of Martin Luther King Jr biography ‘King: A Life’

Chris Rock and Steven Spielberg have joined forces for an upcoming movie centred around the life of Martin Luther King Jr - but it is Rock who is going to go behind the camera as the biopic’s director, according to Variety. 

Rock is currently in the final stages of negotiations to direct and produce the project, with Spielberg taking on the role of executive producer. Universal Pictures is said to be supporting the biographical drama, having secured the rights to Jonathan Eig's biography, ‘King: A Life.’

Eig's book is widely regarded as the definitive biography of the late civil rights icon. It draws from newly unearthed FBI information and extensive interviews to present King as a complex figure—courageous yet emotionally troubled, advocating peaceful protest while wrestling with his own vulnerabilities and a government that pursued him. As the project is in its early development phase, casting details have not yet been disclosed.

Universal's Senior Vice President of Production Development, Ryan Jones, will oversee the film on behalf of the studio. The untitled movie will be produced by Amblin Partners, with Kristie Macosko Krieger serving as producer and Spielberg as the executive producer.

Chris Rock, a four-time Emmy and three-time Grammy winner, has previously ventured into directing with films such as 2003's ‘Head of State’ and 2007's ‘I Think I Love My Wife.’ Rock will also appear in director George C. Wolfe's ‘Rustin,’ where Colman Domingo portrays the civil rights activist. Earlier this year, Rock made headlines with his Netflix live stand-up special, "Chris Rock: Selective Outrage," where he candidly addressed the incident in which he was slapped on stage at the Oscars by Will Smith.

The book rights for the film were secured through negotiations led by Lucy Stille at Lucy Stille Literary, representing the David Black Agency.