Oscar winner Steve McQueen’s Small Axe series is made up of five films, including Mangrove; Lovers Rock (out this week, and extremely good); and Red, White, and Blue. It stars John Boyega as Leroy Logan, a Black forensic scientist who becomes a cop to challenge the racist attitudes of London’s Metropolitan Police Force from within.
Red, White, and Blue is based on a real story, and the Star Wars actor met with Logan “to understand the man behind that decision, how the man was strong enough to take on that kind of conflict in order to give the police force the proper kind of representation it needed,” he told IndieWire. “Leroy actually had quite a comfortable life and could have just lived his life being a scientist, made his money, moved on. He actually chose the obstacle. He chose the challenge. And so for me, that difference was very important.”
Here’s the official plot synopsis:
After seeing his father assaulted by police officers, a young Black man is driven to join the force, with hopes of changing racist attitudes from within. He soon finds himself facing both his father’s disapproval and racism in the ranks.
Red, White, and Blue, which also stars Steve Toussaint, Tyrone Huntley, Nathan Vidal, and Jaden Oshenye, premieres on Amazon Prime Video on November 29.