‘moonlight’ director recruits stephan james to star in james baldwin adaptation

As we reported last month, ‘Moonlight’ director/screenwriter Barry Jenkins is working on a film adaptation of James Baldwin’s “If Beale Street Could Talk,” and it looks like Jenkins has snagged actor Stephan James for the lead role of Fonny, a man falsely accused of sexual assault in 1974 Harlem James, best known for his role as Jesse Ownes in the 2016 biopic ‘Race’, also earned critical praise for his role on the limited Fox series “Shots Fired”.

Production for “If Beale Street Could Talk” is scheduled to begin in October.