Tyler James Williams Talks 'Detroit' Re-Release

Tyler James Williams

By Darlene Donloe

When the emotional and gut-wrenching drama, Detroit, hit theaters last summer, it opened with mixed emotions. Some applauded the fact that it was telling a little-known story about the Detroit riots, while other winced at the opening of old wounds.

Detroit, tells the enthralling true story of one of the most chilling moments during the racially charged civil uprising that choked the city of Detroit in the summer of '67.

Directed by Academy Award®-winner Kathryn Bigelow (The Hurt Locker/Zero Dark Thirty) and written by Mark Boal, Detroit first hit theaters nationwide on July 28, 2017.

The film is about the murder of three unarmed black men who were shot and killed at point-blank range, and about several other men and women who were mentally tortured and brutally beaten by white members of the Detroit Police Department after they and the Michigan State Police, the Michigan Army National Guard and a local private security guard searched and then seized an annex of the Algiers Motel after reports of gunshots being fired.

It was released 50 years after the deadly Detroit riots.

Detroit, which is being re-released nationwide, December 1, 2017, for awards season, hasn’t performed well since its initial run.   The hope is that the second time around, even after all the hoopla, the movie can get an awards nod and that audiences will give the movie a fighting chance.

The film recently garnered four NAACP Image Award nominations including Outstanding Motion Picture, Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture (Algee Smith), Outstanding Independent Motion Picture and Outstanding Writing in a Motion Picture (Mark Boal).

'Detroit' cast members and Questlove (top L)

I recently caught up with several members of the Detroit cast at a press luncheon at Nerano restaurant in Beverly Hills to talk about the film and their expectations for its re-release. I sat down with Tyler James Williams (Everybody Hates Chris), who was very forthcoming about his feelings surrounding the film.

Tyler James Williams in 'Everybody Hates Chris'

TYLER JAMES WILLIAMS (TJW): The movie is being re-released Dec. 1, 2017.  We had to hit the 50-year anniversary. No amount of awards was going to change that.

DD: What was the vibe when you visited Detroit?

TJW:  Detroit was very aware of what we were filming when we were filming. There was a sense of ‘don’t mess this up. This is the only chance we have to tell this.’  You’re not just telling a story – you are telling our story. It was interesting. When I flew in to do the movie, the driver was telling me about the incident, not knowing I was there to work on a movie about the incident.  He was telling me about what happened at the Algiers.  We had no idea this existed. No idea it happened. It led more to the gravity. This is something not easily forgotten. People remember this like it was yesterday.

DD: Did you feel a sense of responsibility?

TJW:  An incredible sense of responsibility. Everyone did.  For my role, I immediately made parallels to Michael Brown. That was my goal. I’m telling his story today. It mirrored so much. When I was reading the script, I kept saying, “I’ve read this story before, but like recently.” 

DD: It’s 50 years. Has anything changed in your opinion?

TJW:  NO.  The greatest lie the devil ever told was that he didn’t exist.  I think right now we’re telling ourselves the lie that we fixed this already.  We didn’t. We never, ever fixed it. It’s still a problem and that’s why I think we’ve run into a hesitation. People know this is a great movie, but are like, “Eh, I don’t want to see it.” People don’t want to look in the mirror and see where they live. That’s all.

DD:  Some black men say they when they leave their homes – they leave their homes as black men. They have to be conscious of everything they do.  You are young. Do you feel the same way?

TJW: I’m a young, black man who is heavily tattooed, who drives an all blacked-out Range Rover. I get pulled over left and right. Yes!

Tyler James Williams in a scene from 'Detroit'

DD: What happens when you’re pulled over?

TJW: I know how to move now. I know the world that I live in. I’m aware of that. That doesn't make it right, but I know how to communicate with police officers. But that doesn’t mean on any day of frustration my communication doesn’t change and I can end up like anybody else.  My dad was a cop and made me very aware of the world that I live in.  Even from a cop perspective, he’d say, “You are a black male. You will be targeted. I’ll tell you right now.” I read the curriculums. I know how cops work. Watch out! Especially in LA and California, a black male with money is not attractive. There are no rose colored glasses here. There are no illusions of fame. Money and success change nothing.

DD: Does success for the movie come from what’s on the screen or the money it’s made?

TJW: To me, it’s what’s on the screen. We knew this would be a hard movie to sell to people because People don’t want to look at their history. They just don’t. They much prefer films about slavery because they feel it’s far away. They can watch because that’s not our generation. With this movie, we’re dealing with something where, yeah, there are some people still alive who experienced this incident, so we can’t have changed the conversation that much. So we knew that. If you think anybody got into this movie to make money then…..you don’t understand the type of people who were pulled into this movie. To me, the success is when people see it, they can’t unsee it.

Detroit (Annapurna Pictures) stars John Boyega, Will Poulter, Algee Smith, Jacob Latimore, Jason Mitchell, Hannah Murray, Kaitlyn Dever, Jack Reynor, Ben O’Toole, Joseph David Jones, Ephraim Sykes, Leon Thomas III, Nathan Davis Jr., Peyton Alex Smith, Malcolm David Kelley, Gbenga Akinnabve, Chris Chalk, Jeremy Strong, Laz Alonzo, Austin Hebert, Miguel Pimentel, Kris Davis, with John Krasinski and Anthony Mackie.