Nate Parker's 'Birth Of A Nation' Screening Rescheduled

The American Film Institute announced Tuesday that a Birth of A Nation screening scheduled for the end of the week with director and actor Nate Parker would be canceled and re-scheduled for later in the year, Variety reports.

A second screening date has not been released. The Birth of a Nation, which secured a record-breaking $17.5 million distribution deal, opens in theaters on October 7.

AFI Dean Jan Schuette said she decided to re-schedule the event once students raised questions. Friday’s screening would have been Parker’s first public appearance in the past two weeks, after news surrounding his alleged involvement in a 1999 rape reached a fever pitch.

“I have been the recipient of many different passionate points of view about the screening, and I believe it is essential that we discuss these issues together — messenger and message, gender, race and more — before we see the film,” Schuette said. “Next week, we will be scheduling a special moderated discussion so we may explore these issues together as artists and audience.”

In the interim, AFI announced they would screen Jack Reacher: Never Go Back, director Edward Zwick’s latest film. Zwick is also an AFI board member and executive producer on Parker’s film.

SOURCE: Variety | PHOTO CREDIT: Getty

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Should Black America Support ‘Birth Of A Nation’ Amid Nate Parker Scandal?

Nate Parker’s ‘Birth Of A Nation’ Screening Rescheduled Amid Controversy was originally published on newsone.com