Right now, all attention is on the extremely necessary protests unfolding in the United States and the rest of the world after the unlawful murder of George Floyd at the hands of four police officers in Minneapolis, Minnesota. In an effort to make sure the focus stays on these historical protests, Hollywood creators are delaying some projects that were intended to debut this week.
The debut of Lin-Manuel Miranada‘s documentary We Are Freestyle Love Supreme, which focuses on the improvisational hip-hop group of the same name, has been pushed back, and the premiere of the kid-centric competition show Star Wars: Jedi Temple Challenge has also been delayed.
We Are Freestyle Love Supreme posted this statement to Twitter about the documentary film’s delay:
“We. Are. Freestyle. Love. Supreme.
We are for the freedom of expression, creativity, inclusion, equality, and most of all, love. Our work has always centered around creating a safe space for those ideals to flourish. Our show does not exist without the generations of brilliant Black artists that created two of our most beloved American art forms, jazz and hip-hop.
Today our country, our world struggles to reach an end to this systematic racial injustice, intolerance, police brutality and hate. We add our voices to that fight. To that struggle.
Because in this moment, our collective attention is turned toward these most pressing concerns, we have decided to postpone the premiere of our film, We Are Freestyle Love Supreme.
We believe that through activism, understanding and love, this country will realize that now is the time for lasting, real change and equity.
We are Freestyle Love Supreme.
We are for love.
We are for justice.
We are with you.
Black lives matter.
Peace, love and power,
FLS”
Originally scheduled to arrive on Hulu on June 5, there has been no new release date announced yet, but you can still watch the trailer for the film right here. It could be delayed until sweeping changes are made to demilitarize and defund police forces around the United States, and considering the inaction of our government to institute any policy changes in the wake of these protests, that could take awhile.
Star Wars: Jedi Temple Challenge Pushed Back
Following their pledge of $5 million to support social justice causes, The Walt Disney Company has decided to hold back one of their projects that was intended to debut this week. The physical competition series Star Wars: Jedi Temple Challenge, originally produced for Disney+, was meant to debut on the Star Wars Kids YouTube channel on June 3. However, executive producer Ahmed Best, who played Jar Jar Binks in the Star Wars prequel trilogy, felt it was best to delay the series for the time being.
Here’s the post that Best made to Instagram to announce the delay of the show’s premiere:
View this post on Instagram
I’m so pumped to share #jeditemplechallenge with everyone. The fan response at Celebration last year was the beginning of my return to the galaxy I love so much. #KelleranBeq “The Sabered Hand” is the first Black number one lead of anything #StarWars and that is so very important to me. I’m also a #producer of the show and that makes me doubly excited to bring this thing to you. But as a black man, a black father, a black producer and black artist I have to consider all that is happening in the world right now. Our team has decided to push the premiere of #Jeditemplechallenge until next Wednesday June 10th. Hopefully we can be in a better headspace next week to enjoy this game show. I’ve been a part of this family for twenty years and I’ve felt your support. The excitement behind #KelleranBeq has me bursting with ideas of lore and backstory. Can't wait to share all of that with you. Star Wars fans, I appreciate us. #maytheforcebewithyoualways #hangwithmeonemoreweek #starwarsfandom #balance #jarjarbinks #blacklivesmatter #blackproducer #blackartists #maytheforcebewithyou
A post shared by Ahmed Best (@bestahmed) on
So now Star Wars: Jedi Temple Challenge will debut on June 10. We’re glad Ahmed Best made this decision as a black creator, and we’re even more happy to see that Disney supported the decision. You can still get a glimpse of the series in the trailer right here.
This show of solidarity at Disney comes in the wake of fellow Star Wars talents speaking out in support of the Black Lives Matter movement. John Boyega gave a passionate speech to protesters in the United Kingdom, and Bad Robot and Katie McGrath and J.J. Abrams Family Foundation have vowed to pledge $2 million annually over five years, resulting in $10 million total for organizations and efforts committed to anti-racist agendas.
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/Film proudly stands by the Black Lives Matter movement. If you need to understand why, please read our post from earlier this week when we went dark in support of the #BlackoutTuesday initiative. There you will also find links to organizations that need your support during this moment.
The post ‘We Are Freestyle Love Supreme’ Documentary and ‘Star Wars: Jedi Temple Challenge’ Premieres Delayed in Solidarity with Protesters appeared first on /Film.