Original-Cin Q&A: Kingsley Ben-Adir talks playing Malcolm X in One Night in Miami and Obama in The Comey Rule
Regina King's feature film directorial debut One Night in Miami packs a powerful punch. Set in 1964, it gives us a unique look at a meeting between four real-life legendary friends, Malcolm X, Muhammad Ali, football legend Jim Brown and singer Sam Cooke.
Adapted from the play by Kemp Powers, One Night in Miami - which debuts on Amazon Prime on Friday, January 15 - centres on Malcolm X (Kingsley Ben-Adir, who recently played Barack Obama in Showtime's The Comey Rule). He’s trying to recruit high-profile converts to Islam, and his entry point is Ali (Eli Goree), then still billed as Cassius Clay.
The boxer has just won the heavyweight title when he and friends gather in a Florida hotel room. Rounding out the foursome are star NFL running back Jim Brown (Aldis Hodge) and crooner Sam Cooke (Leslie Odom Jr. from the musical Hamilton), who are skeptical about Malcolm's pitch. What takes place is a still-relevant conversation about the Civil-Rights struggle, the demands of celebrity, and the benefits and dangers associated with using one's platform to speak out. Bonnie Laufer spoke with KIngsley Ben-Adir via Zoom from his home in London (where he is currently in lockdown) about the film and the relevance it holds today.
Malcolm X (Kingsley Ben-Adir) snaps pals Jim Brown (Aldis Hodge), Ali (Eli Goree) and Sam Cooke (Leslie Odom Jr.)
ORIGINAL-CIN: I first saw One Night In Miami during the Toronto International Film Festival and was blown away. I ended up watching it again before speaking with you, because I was so riveted by the conversation these four men have. How daunting was it for you to play Malcolm X, and did it scare you in any way before agreeing to take on the role?
KINGSLEY BEN-ADIR: “I kind of asked for it because I remember when the first audition came through for Cassius Clay in the summertime, I felt a little too old. There was a youthfulness about him in this film that I didn’t feel that I was right for.
“But what really got me excited was the conversation between Malcolm and Sam Cooke. I told my agent if the role of Malcolm was available, I would be really interested in putting something down on tape to show Regina. And a few weeks before Christmas that's what happened.
They were in a bit of a situation where they needed to find someone to play Malcolm pretty quickly, and I was ready to jump in and do the work. I feel like the nerves I felt were definitely around the time I auditioned, when it's all out of your hands and you are waiting to find out whether you're going to get the job. Once Regina cast me I had 12 days to prepare, so there wasn’t really much time to think about anything else other than just taking a deep dive in.”
O.C. Only having 12 days to take on a role of this magnitude is pretty extraordinary. We have seen other portrayals of Malcolm X. The one that comes to everyone's mind is Denzel Washington’s performance. But you play a very different Malcolm X in this film. He’s more vulnerable, and we see his passion but we also get to see a personal side of him. It might have been a blessing that you didn’t really have any time to do any research and just relied on the brilliant text.
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BEN-ADIR: “What I found really interesting is that this is an exploration of these men on one night in the middle of one specific conversation. So, when I read the script I thought, ‘Wow, this is really Malcolm in a different setting in the way that we haven't seen him before.’
“Something about Kemp’s words and this text that becomes really clear early on is that the vulnerability of these men. And the love and friendship and the joy and the connection between them really is what's beautiful about this piece.”
“Regina’s mission statement or mantra to us coming in was that this was a love letter to Black men. And that was, for me at least, such a beautiful idea to have mentally going in.
“I was trying to read as much as possible and watch as much as possible, especially to get his dialect. I was trying to lose weight and I was trying everything I could to get into the spirit of Malcolm, and sort of understand who he was at this time and what the stakes for him were at this time.”
O.C. There amount of information had to have been overwhelming.
BEN-ADIR: “Yeah, because I think, in an ideal world, you do your reading and then you start your dialect and you pace it out over a longer period of time. But I was in a situation where I had to do it all at the same time.
“I think looking back at it all, the main work was listening and repeating. I feel like that really helped me stay in the zone. I always felt like Malcolm was with me. if I wasn't watching him, he was always in my ear. I always had his sound or his visual in my orbit, and that kept me in a place of confidence and as connected to him as I could be to get through it.”
O.C. Here you have four guys who are clearly friends on screen. But as actors, you were literally thrown into this with no rehearsal period. Had you met any of the guys beforehand, because you really get that camaraderie on screen.
BEN-ADIR: “That's cool. Thank you. Leslie Odom Jr, who plays Sam Cooke, and I tested together in New York. So that was one Saturday just before Christmas when Leslie and I were in a room together, and we threw a couple of things over Skype to send to Regina to see us together in the space.
“So I think that maybe gave Regina a bit of an indication of us together in a few scenes before she cast me. Leslie was already cast but he came in to test with me and someone else.”
“I feel like there was something about the time pressure that made us all work so well. There was something about us not knowing each other and knowing that we didn't have that much time that put a really interesting sort of pressure cooker atmosphere on us. It gave us an energy if you like. And we really all just jumped into this investigation non-stop until the end.
“We were always in conversation and asking each other questions and coming in with ideas and bouncing off each other. We spent six or seven weeks together just investigating the stakes and the world of these men. I don't know, maybe if we'd had more time there would have been a different energy coming in but having to plunge right in really helped our dynamic.”
O.C: Having Regina King as your director had to have been a gift. Her talent knows no bounds, even beyond acting. We have seen some of her direction on TV projects and she has an incredible vision.
BEN-ADIR: “I agree. For me, Regina goes into a very special box of acting talent at the top of their game. She is right up there with Jeffrey Wright, Viggo Mortensen and Olivia Colman - actors who are always operating from such a deep sense of truth, connection and empathy.
“I made the assumption that that was what she was going to be bringing to this project, and boy was I right! We're talking about someone who really understands the acting process more than anyone I've ever worked with.
“She created an atmosphere of calmness and a real deep sense of conscience. She gave us the space to play, investigate and discover these characters and the dialogue we were delivering. She allowed us to really explore and just play on set and find out who these men were and what they were doing.”
O.C: There has been so much discussion about this movie, and although it takes place in 1964, the dialogue and the conversation that these men have is relevant today more than ever.
BEN-ADIR: “I definitely had a really strong sense of the stakes of this film and how important these words were - even before what we've just been experiencing in the last sort of 12 months.
“I think what drew me to the project is that the conversation that we have really connected with me. I felt that the script was really unique. I hadn't read anything like this or seen anything like this before.
“And then we wrapped. And we went into this pandemic and George Floyd and everything that's happened since, which made it even more relevant. In Regina's words, the time for this film is now, and I couldn’t agree with her more.”
O.C. There's a lot of Oscar buzz around this film. How does that make you feel?
BEN-ADIR: “I haven't checked in on anything in a while,, so I haven't really been following that. But what's amazing about having this stream on Amazon Prime Video is that it's going to reach so many people in their homes, especially now in a situation where many of us are back in lockdown. So yeah, it's all good.”
O.C. Before we wrap up, I truly have to commend you on your performance in the mini-series, The Comey Rule. Never mind tackling Malcolm X in One Night In Miami, but then you take on playing President Barack Obama. What was it like to shoot that and work alongside Jeff Daniels?
BEN-ADIR: “Jeff was such a major draw for me to do that project. I remember speaking to the director Billy Ray about it, and was a bit nervous.
“It was only five or six scenes, a small part. But as an acting challenge, I’d never had the opportunity to play someone who really existed - I was cast before I got the role as Malcolm X. and I wondered how I would you go about portraying one of the most famous men on the planet, not to mention one of the most famous voices on the planet!
“It turned out that I had about four or five days on set with Jeff Daniels. And Jeff is a veteran in this business. He’s as good as it gets, and so my fear quickly dissipated thinking about that opportunity.
“It really was one of the most mind-blowing weeks I've ever had on set and was one of the most important educational experiences in my acting career. Watching Jeff work was like a master class, to be honest. He stays in such a deep bubble of concentration, and his laser focus and groundedness is incredible.
“I was taking notes during the day of things he would say. Plus, Billy is someone who operates and works from such a place of love and authority. And it was really interesting to watch his process and learn from him.
“I came on right at the end so they had all been together for about three or four months. It was amazing to shoot both of these roles at the same time. Traveling back and forth from New Orleans and Toronto was a situation you dream of.”
O.C: Did you get the stamp of approval from Barack Obama on your performance?
BEN-ADIR: “Apparently Billy messaged his team and asked them to come down to the set, because he was in Toronto at the time of the shoot. But he didn't have time. So I am not sure if he watched it, but I hope I made him proud.”