This fall Christopher Paul Curtis’ award-winning novel “The Watsons Go to Birmingham” comes to life in a Hallmark Channel television film directed by Kenny Leon and produced by Tonya Lewis Lee.
Starring Anika Noni Rose, David Alan Grier, LaTanya Richardson and Wood Harris, the film takes place in the summer of 1963 as a Michigan family set out on a road trip to Birmingham, Alabama where they discover a polarizing experience dealing with race and civil rights during the historical 16th Street Baptist Church bombing.
“I decided that I wanted to work on 'The Watsons Go to Birmingham' as soon as I read the book,” producer Tonya Lewis Lee said during the film’s featurette. “I felt like I had an understanding of the characters and I thought I could really help bring it to life.”
“The thing that I like most about this story is it’s a real historical event,” actor Bryce Clyde Jenkins added in the clip. “And this allows people to get a perspective of what people went through so people like me can be where they are now. And it’s a real life changing lesson. It makes you feel grateful for what you have.”
“The Watsons Go to Birmingham” premieres Sept. 20 at 8PM/ET on the Hallmark Channel. Check out an exclusive preview in the clip above.
Before You Go
