Sony Pictures Classics to release Sundance-winning ‘Jockey’ starring Clifton Collins Jr. on December 29

The film had its world premiere at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival and will play at the Toronto and Hamptons International Film Festivals this fall 

Sony Pictures Classics announced today that they will release Jockey in theaters in New York and Los Angeles on December 29, then expand throughout the country over the following weeks. Directed by Clint Bentley and written by Bentley and Greg Kwedar, the film stars Clifton Collins Jr., Molly Parker, Moises Arias, Logan Cormier, and Colleen Hartnett. Jockey was met with glowing reviews upon its world premiere at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival, with many hailing Collins Jr.s’ performance, and it will go on to screen at the Toronto International Film Festival and the Hamptons International Film Festival this fall. 

In the film, an aging jockey (Collins) hopes to win one last title for his longtime trainer (Parker), who has acquired what appears to be a championship horse. But the years – and injuries – have taken a toll on his body, throwing into question his ability to continue his lifelong passion. And the arrival of a young rookie rider (Arias), who claims to be his son and whom he takes under his wing, further complicates the path to fulfilling his dream. 

Bentley and Kwedar previously collaborated with Collins on the 2016 award-winning film Transpecos. With Jockey, they wrote the role of Jackson Silva specifically for Collins, and Bentley drew inspiration for the character from his own father, who was a professional jockey. All three immersed themselves in what is known as the “backside” of the track for months before shooting in order to create a naturalistic depiction of the sport. The supporting cast is primarily comprised of real-life jockeys.  

Jockey is produced by Bentley, Kwedar and Nancy Schafer and executive produced by Larry Kalas, Larry Kelly, Linda and Jon Halbert, Cheryl and Walt Penn, Genevieve and Mark Crozier, Cindy and John Greenwood, Ann Grimes and Jay Old, Benjamin Fuqua, Jordy Wax, and Collins Jr. 

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Erik Anderson

Erik Anderson is the founder/owner and Editor-in-Chief of AwardsWatch and has always loved all things Oscar, having watched the Academy Awards since he was in single digits; making lists, rankings and predictions throughout the show. This led him down the path to obsessing about awards. Much later, he found himself in film school and the film forums of GoldDerby, and then migrated over to the former Oscarwatch (now AwardsDaily), before breaking off to create AwardsWatch in 2013.

He is a Rotten Tomatoes-approved critic, accredited by the Cannes Film Festival, Telluride Film Festival, Toronto International Film Festival and more, is a member of the International Cinephile Society (ICS), The Society of LGBTQ Entertainment Critics (GALECA), Hollywood Critics Association (HCA) and the International Press Academy. Among his many achieved goals with AwardsWatch, he has given a platform to underrepresented writers and critics and supplied them with access to film festivals and the industry and calls the Bay Area his home where he lives with his husband and son.

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