Watch Judas And The Black Messiah ‘You Will Know His Name’ Featurette

Today in the UK and Ireland the critically acclaimed Judas And The Black Messiah is finally released. Sadly not in cinemas but on video on demand, but don’t let that put you off watching this fantastic film.

Daniel Kaluuya , LaKeith Stanfield play Fred Hampton and FBI Informant William O’Neal the man who would betray Hampton.

Unless you’re equipped with the knowledge of America’s civil rights movement and the Black Panther Party, Fred Hampton might be unknown to you. Warner Bros have sent us across this short behind the scenes Featurette ‘You Will Know His Name’, that looks into the man they called Chairman Fred Hampton.

Related: Film Review – Judas And The Black Messiah (2021) | Sundance Review

Chairman Fred Hampton was 21 years old when he was assassinated by the FBI, who coerced a petty criminal named William O’Neal to help them silence him and the Black Panther Party. But they could not kill Fred Hampton’s legacy and, 50 years later, his words still echo…louder than ever.
I am a revolutionary!

In 1968, a young, charismatic activist named Fred Hampton became Chairman of the Illinois chapter of the Black Panther Party, who were fighting for freedom, the power to determine the destiny of the Black community, and an end to police brutality and the slaughter of Black people.

Chairman Fred was inspiring a generation to rise up and not back down to oppression, which put him directly in the line of fire of the government, the FBI and the Chicago Police. But to destroy the revolution, they had to do it from both the outside…and the inside. Facing prison, William O’Neal is offered a deal by the FBI: if he will infiltrate the Black Panthers and provide intel on Hampton, he will walk free. O’Neal takes the deal.

Now a comrade in arms in the Black Panther Party, O’Neal lives in fear that his treachery will be discovered even as he rises in the ranks. But as Hampton’s fiery message draws him in, O’Neal cannot escape the deadly trajectory of his ultimate betrayal.

Though his life was cut short, Fred Hampton’s impact has continued to reverberate. The government saw the Black Panthers as a militant threat to the status quo and sold that lie to a frightened public in a time of growing civil unrest. But the perception of the Panthers was not reality. In inner cities across America, they were providing free breakfasts for children, legal services, medical clinics and research into sickle cell anemia, and political education. And it was Chairman Fred in Chicago, who, recognizing the power of multicultural unity for a common cause, created the Rainbow Coalition—joining forces with other oppressed peoples in the city to fight for equality and political empowerment.

The film also includes Jesse Plemons, Dominique Fishback, Ashton Sanders, and Martin Sheen.

Judas And The Black Messiah is released today 11th March in the UK and Ireland on premium video on demand.