‘The United States vs. Billie Holiday’ will open in UK cinemas March 12, 2021

Entertainment One (eOne) today announced the UK theatrical release date of March 12, 2021 for THE UNITED STATES VS. BILLIE HOLIDAY, the highly anticipated new feature directed and produced by Academy Award nominated director Lee Daniels (Precious, The Butler) and inspired by the novel “Chasing the Scream: The First and Last Days of the War on Drugs” by Johann Hari.

Grammy nominated singer of worldwide anthem Rise Up, Andra Day (MARSHALL and CARS 3), leads a diverse cast alongside co-stars NAACP Image Award Nominee Trevante Rhodes (BIRD BOX and MOONLIGHT), SAG Award Nominee Garrett Hedlund (MUDBOUND and TRIPLE FRONTIER), and Emmy Award Nominee Natasha Lyonne (RUSSIAN DOLL and ORANGE IS THE NEW BLACK). Other cast members include: Tone Bell (LITTLE and SYLVIE’S LOVE), Blake DeLong (WHEN THEY SEE US), Melvin Gregg (SNOWFALL), Erik LaRay Harvey (GODFATHER OF HARLEM, LUKE CAGE), Miss Lawrence (STAR), Adriane Lenox (THE BUTLER), Rob Morgan (JUST MERCY and MUDBOUND), Da’Vine Joy Randolph (DOLEMITE IS MY NAME), Evan Ross (THE HUNGER GAMES: MOCKINGJAY – PARTS 1 & 2) and Tyler James Williams (EVERYBODY HATES CHRIS).

The legendary Billie Holiday, one of the greatest jazz musicians of all time, spent much of her career being adored by fans across the globe, all while federal agents targeted her with an undercover sting operation aimed at prohibiting her from singing the controversial song, Strange Fruit, a timeless call to action that would herald the modern Civil Rights Movement. Inspired by her life story, THE UNITED STATES VS. BILLIE HOLIDAY intimately examines her struggles with fame, addiction and heartbreaking love.

The script is written by Suzan-Lori Parks. Parks was the first African-American woman to receive a Pulitzer Prize for her play TOPDOG/UNDERDOG and later went on to script NATIVE SON in 2019.

The film is produced by New Slate Ventures, Lee Daniels Entertainment, Roth Kirschenbaum Films with Jordan Fudge, Lee Daniels, Pamela Oas Williams, Tucker Tooley, Joe Roth and Jeff Kirschenbaum. Executive Producers include Hilary Shor, Jeremy Allen, Patty Long, Johann Hari, Cassian Elwes, Mark Bomback and Dennis Stratton.

No US date has been announced yet from Paramount Pictures.

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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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