'The Trial of The Chicago 7' Cast: Meet Sacha Baron Cohen, Eddie Redmayne and rest of Aaron Sorkin's stars
In 1968, tensions in the United States of America was running high, with the anti-Vietnam War protests being more agitated than ever and the Civil Rights activism movement gaining momentum. It was also the year two key political leaders were assassinated: Robert F Kennedy who was running for president at the time of his assassination and before him, Civil Rights leader, Martin Luther King Jr. To say that America was in turmoil may have been an understatement.
During the Democratic National Convention that year in Chicago, mass protests took place attended by over 15,000 people. Police resorted to using tear gas, verbal and physical confrontation and protesters retaliated by throwing rocks and bottles and damaging private commercial properties. Over the course of five days and nights, the police made numerous arrests, in addition to using tear gas, mace and batons on the marchers.
In the aftermath of the protests, the US federal government charged eight people with conspiracy, inciting to riot and other charges related to the protests. Of them, the eighth man charged, Black Panther Party co-founder Bobby Seale, had his trial severed during the proceedings. The group of defendants who were initially called the Chicago Eight was then called the Chicago Seven.
The stories of these eight people are what Aaron Sorkin's latest political drama is about, which he has both written and directed. 'The Trial of The Chicago Seven' was supposed to be released theatrically, but due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the movie is instead set to be released on Netflix shortly.
The drama boasts of some of the biggest names in Hollywood and with such a star-studded cast, the expectations are high. Read on to know who will be starring in 'The Trial of The Chicago 7' and whom they will be playing.
Yahya Abdul-Mateen II
Yahya Abdul-Mateen II is an actor and architect best known for his roles in 'Aquaman', 'Watchmen', and 'The Get Down'. He is playing the role of Bobby Seale. Seale is a political activist who co-founded the Black Panther Party with Huey Newton.
Sacha Baron Cohen
Sacha Baron Cohen is an English actor and comedian who is best known for his work on 'Borat', 'The Dictator', and 'Grimsby'. He plays the role of the late Abbie Hoffman, a political activist who co-founded the Youth International Party and was a leading proponent of the Flower Power movement.
Eddie Redmayne
Eddie Redmayne is a British actor best known for his work in 'The Theory of Everything', 'My Week with Marilyn', and the 'Fantastic Beasts' series. He will play the role of Tom Hayden, a social and political activist as well as a politician. Hayden was best known for his major role as an anti-war and civil rights activist in the 1960s.
Michael Keaton
Michael Keaton is an actor best known for his work in 'Birdman', 'Beetlejuice', and 'The Founder'. He plays the role of Ramsey Clark, a lawyer, activist, and former federal government official. Clark was opposed to the death penalty and aggressively supported civil liberties and civil rights, and was dedicated to enforcing antitrust provisions.
The movie also stars Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Richard Schultz, Frank Langella as Judge Julius Hoffman, John Carroll Lynch as David Dellinger, Mark Rylance as William Kunstler, Alex Sharp as Rennie Davis, Jeremy Strong as Jerry Rubin and more.
'The Trial of The Chicago 7' will be available to stream on Netflix on Friday, October 16, at 12 am PST.