Exclusive: Reginald Hudlin On Directing Football Drama ‘Safety’

Coming to Disney+ on Friday, December 11, 2020 is its new film, “Safety”, inspired by the empowering true story of former Clemson University football safety Ray McElrathbey, a young man facing a series of challenging circumstances, whose dedication and persistence help him to triumph over repeated adversities. Aided by his teammates and the Clemson community, he succeeds on the field while simultaneously raising and caring for his 11-year-old brother Fahmarr. “Safety” will debut exclusively on Disney+ on Friday, December 11, 2020.

Directing the film is Oscar nominee Reginald Hudlin (“Django Unchained,” “Marshall”). Mostly seen as a producer on numerous projects from films, TV programs and live events including the 72nd Primetime Emmy Awards, it’s rare that he steps into the director’s chair for films. He recently directed the The Black Godfather and prior to that was Marshall starring Chadwick Boseman.

BlackFilmandTV.com recently spoke with Hudlin on his experience with Safety and bringing this story for a mass audience.

What went into doing this movie?

Reginald Hudlin: I love the script. I read it. I was like, "Oh my god, this is crazy." My wife saw me pacing around the house after 20 pages, she goes, "What's up?” I said, "this is good." Around 40 pages later, I'm pacing again and said "I'm thinking of going to work." That was it.

You’re more known as a producer and you don’t switch hats to directing that often, so what was it about this that made you said, I'm going to get behind this one?

Reginald Hudlin: It was incredibly entertaining to me. I just read it non stop. I didn't stop and make a sandwich in the middle of it. I was inspired by his story. I felt like this is a message that the public needed right now. So if you could do all three of those things in a script, that's a movie you should make.

When you making a sports story, people always want to see action scenes. Was this all new to you as far as what you wanted to do behind the camera?

Reginald Hudlin: Well, it was really exciting to make. I had not done a sports movie in a while since Great White Hype. I've never done a football movie. But there are a couple of football movies that were really inspirational to me. Any Given Sunday by Oliver Stone, and Friday Night Lights. Those two movies were beautifully done. When you look at Friday night football, It's so well shot. It's really great. So when you make a movie about it, you're like, "What are we going to deliver in terms of a visual experience? That tops what people see, when they watch football?" That's a really high bar. I got together with my team, my director of photography, sports coordinator and with my AD. We really plotted this thing out very carefully. What really makes me happy is when people see the movie, who are athletes, they go, "Wow, you actually got it right. I played football in college, I played pro football. Normally I'm mad watching these movies, but you actually nailed it, Reggie." That gives me great relief, great joy.

It's not just any film, it’s a true story about Ray McElrathbey's life and he's still alive. How did you work in getting his story and his persona to translate on a screen?

Reginald Hudlin: It was really interesting, because he still a young man, and he was there the entire time. He was there, hanging out with the actors. He was there talking to us about his real life. He was a presence and a resource that we pulled on all the time. He understands with movies, that everything's not going to be exactly the same. We all want to make sure that we were true to what was really important about his life experience. That then made the movie richer to me, because he has one of those lives that if you made it up, would not be believable. So it only works because it's a true story.

Can you talk about putting together the cast?

Reginald Hudlin: We had to get actors who were really good, young actors who were really good. We didn't want to do resort to any cheap Hollywood tricks. We wanted folks who would get out there and could really catch and really throw and really run and really hit. And that's what we got. People auditioned, and they read the sides, and then we took them out on the field. You had to do both. That's why I think we have authenticity in the film.

Between producing films and documentaries and other events, what goes into saying yes to the projects you take?

Reginald Hudlin: Do I really want to do it? Does it looks like fun? Does it look like a challenge? Is it a statement that needs to be made right now in terms of what's going to make our society better? I weigh all those factors. This did. It checked every box and made me excited to think about making it and the people I was working with the whole production team were all good people.

Being that the film will be on Disney+, did you direct it differently, knowing the platform is going to be on?

Reginald Hudlin: Not at all. My thing is, people watch movies in all places. They watch them on a big screen, they watch them on TV, or they watch them on their phone. I'm not going to pander or shrink my vision just because it's going to debut on television. So many people now have giant screens, and great surround sound. I shoot my movies, and I mixed my movies with the idea that it's a movie.

What did you think of last Saturday’s game against Notre Dame and Clemson losing?

Reginald Hudlin: Look, they have a long history of winning. In any given game, you can win and you can lose. It’s heartbreaking, but when you're there at their stadium, and you see all the national championships they racked up, you just go, "Yeah, these guys are, they're a machine. They're incredible.”

Are you a big football fan?

Reginald Hudlin: I'm not a big football fan. I like football. The thing about this movie is that if you're a football fan, you're going to love it. But if you're not a football fan, you'll love it. We've shown this movie to people who were not into football.. And you know, they care about the characters you know their lives. You know, for me this is that category of football movie or sports movie, you know, not unlike you know, I don't know you know Brian song or whatever. But it's like it's a you know, it's sports is to humanity that sports brings out a good