Following his Oscar-nominated turn as the civil rights leader in Rustin (2023), Colman Domingo is back in the awards spotlight this year with Sing Sing. The critically acclaimed film from A24 (in theaters for a limited run from Friday, January 17), is as much the celebration of a remarkable prison-based theater-arts rehabilitation program, as it is of the gifted ensemble of formerly incarcerated men (and program-alumni) playing themselves on screen. It’s here where Domingo shines not only as ‘Divine G’ — an inmate who inspires and devotes himself to the struggles of his fellow inmate-performers — but by applying his very own real-life star power as an actor to make the film itself a reality.
“This is a terrific movie,” says Sing Sing booster, Jane Fonda who hosted a screening of the film, directed by Greg Kwedar (Transpecos), at The London Hotel in West Hollywood, earlier this month. “It’s amazing what Colman has done,” says the legendary actress-activist, who’s found a kindred spirit in Domingo, with his laser-like focus on stories steeped in social relevance and irresistible emotional appeal. With Sing Sing, Domingo brings that one-two punch once again in a film brimming with hope and heart.
“Every step of this experience, building this film, has been met with grace and love, and dignity and respect,” says Domingo himself, while reserving special praise for costar, Clarence Maclin – a man previously incarcerated at Sing Sing, here making his feature-film acting debut.
“I literally said yes to this project, because of you,” Domingo continues. “There was an invitation [from the] producers, but it was your “Colman we can do it,” that said, ‘This brother needs me.’ And I needed him, whether I knew it or not; that we needed each other in this moment, to stand for each other, to stand on the possibility of what men can be to each other.”
“After being in this industry and doing my work for 34 years,” Domingo notes in conclusion, “I was finally allowed to bring everything I had.”
Steven Goldman is a freelance writer based in Los Angeles and a member of the Critics Choice Association.