After debuting at the Toronto International Film Festival earlier this month, Annapurna Pictures has released the first trailer for Barry Jenkins’ new film If Beale Street Could Talk, an adaptation of James Baldwin’s 1974 novel of the same name. This is Jenkins’ first film following his Academy Award-winning picture Moonlight from 2016.
Set in the early 1970s, Beale Street stars newcomer KiKi Layne and Stephan James as as a young, loving couple. Friends since childhood, 19-year-old Clementine “Tish” Rivers and Alonzo “Fonny” Hunt fall in love and plan out their future, until Fonny is arrested for a crime he did not commit. Following Alonzo’s wrongful conviction of rape, Clementine works to get her husband-to-be out of jail before the birth of their baby.
The movie also stars Regina King, Colman Domingo, Dave Franco, Atlanta’s Brian Tyree Henry, and more.
With If Beale Street Could Talk, Jenkins directs and writes the first English-language feature film based on the work of Baldwin, one of the most important authors of the 20th century. This is Jenkins' third movie, as he continues to established his dedication to stories that showcase the power of love and family. “Remember love is what brought you here, and if you trusted love this far, don’t panic now, trust it all the way,” King tells Tish at the end of the new trailer.
The first look at the film came on what would have been James Baldwin's 94th birthday, on Aug. 2.
The Harlem love story hits the big screen on Nov. 30.
