Delroy Lindo Makes Directorial Debut With ‘Jabari’s People’: Winston Duke, Marianne Jean-Baptiste and Wendell Pierce Star

Delroy Lindo, the 73-year-old actor nominated for an Oscar for his role in “Sinners,” will make his directorial debut with the film “Jabari’s People” — a family drama set in Jamaica.

The film has just wrapped a 22-day shoot in Kingston. The cast features Winston Duke, known from “Black Panther,” in the role of the father; Marianne Jean-Baptiste as the grandmother; Wendell Pierce as a doctor; and newcomer Seyi Andes-Pelumi in the role of Jabari — a teenager from Brooklyn who, after the sudden death of his mother, moves to Jamaica’s Blue Mountains to live with his estranged grandparents, where he confronts family, grief, identity and legacy. Lindo himself plays the grandfather.

Lindo first came across the story in 2015, when he was invited to act in it. In 2021 he bought the rights and decided to direct the film himself. “Ever since I got the rights, I knew I would direct it myself,” he told The Hollywood Reporter, adding that the story “touched me in my soul as a man of Jamaican descent.”

Born in England to a Jamaican mother, Lindo is known for roles in films such as “Malcolm X,” “Crooklyn,” “Clockers,” “Get Shorty,” “The Cider House Rules,” “Da 5 Bloods” and “The Harder They Fall.” With “Jabari’s People” he brings to the screen a personal story, closely tied to his roots. No premiere date or distributor for the film has been announced yet.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter