Chiwetel Ejiofor to Write & Direct True Life Pic 'Rob Peace', Film Stars Jay Will, Camila Cabello, Mary J. Blige & Ejiofor

by Darian Scalamoni

    Chiwetel Ejiofor has had a very interesting career in front of the camera as the English-born actor starred in a Best Picture winner early in the 2010s with 12 Years a Slave but since has been relegated to playing a one-dimensional bad guy in the MCU and doing many small indie films. However, he wrote and directed his first film back in 2019 with The Boy Who Harnessed Wind and now, he's set his next feature that's assembling quite an interesting cast.

    Ejifor's next directorial effort will come in the form of a drama titled Rob Peace, which is based on a true story of the titular character who will be played by Tulsa King star Jay Will. The film is based on the book: The Short and Tragic Life of Robert Peace: A Brilliant Young Man Who Left Newark for the Ivy League, and despite the wordy title, that is what the story revolves around. Peace is a young man who grew up in the crime-ridden city of Newark, NJ who later overcome his environment to earn a degree in molecular biophysics and biochemistry. Though Peace was a brilliant academic, he also was living a double life in his time in college and beyond. Despite being a lab researcher of cancer and infectious diseases, he also was making six figures dealing marijuana during his time at Yale and post-grad. Unfortunately, Peace was killed in a drug-related shooting in 2011 marking a tragic end to what could've been an uplifting story. Ejiofor also wrote the script for the project that is currently filming.

    Rob Peace sounds like a great drama that could garner awards consideration if done right, however, with Ejiofor's creative eye for the craft, I have faith that this adaptation is an admirable undertaking that will be done with care and love for Peace's story. Jay Will's character of Tyson in Tulsa King is one of my breakouts of 2022 and I hope this will be a true showcase of his acting ability. Mary J. Blige and Ejiofor will serve as Peace's parents within the film, while pop star Camila Cabello will play Peace's classmate Naya as well.

    Ejiofor was nominated for an Academy Award for his lead performance as Solomon Northup in 12 Years a Slave back in 2014. Since then, he's appeared in the MCU as Baron Mordo within the Doctor Strange franchise, had a stint on TV with his Showtime series The Man Who Fell to Earth and he also voiced Scar in the live-action version of The Lion King for Disney. Ejiofor recently starred in the sci-fi comedy The Pod Generation alongside Emilia Clarke which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival.

    Cabello and Blige are both music artists first but have had different levels of fame and success within the film industry. Cabello made her on-screen acting debut as the lead in Amazon Prime's Cinderella back in 2021. Rob Peace will serve as a big step up in dramatic work for the multi-platinum recording artist. Meanwhile, Blige has been nominated for an Academy Award for her acting ability in Netflix drama Mudbound. She now stars as one of the leads on Starz series Power Book II: Ghost as Monet Stewart Tejada.