The story of how legendary baseball player Jackie Robinson began to overcome the seething racism in the sport in the 1940s is certainly a compelling story. So it’s hardly shocking that Warner Bros. and writer/director Brian Helgeland agree, and have made 42. The latest trailer for the movie is online over at Apple’s site.
Chadwick Boesman stars as Robinson, who together with Brooklyn Dodgers general manager Branch Rickey (Harrison Ford, getting to be crusty and grouchy but also noble), worked to break the “colour bar” on baseball at a national level.
Of course, there was plenty of opposition, but given Robinson’s sheer skill, he was finally able to break through, and his 42 shirt became iconic. That’s not a spoiler, incidentally. Unless you consider history a spoiler.
Though the footage boasts one or two lines of dialogue that sound like characters in a film as opposed to real people talking, we’ve still got faith in Helgeland and the story itself.
**42 **arrives Stateside on April 12, but there’s no sign of a UK date just yet. If you’re in need of a refresher about the Robinson story, check out the featurette that Warners has put online below.