Mary J. Blige returns to the big screen this summer in Rob Peace, a drama directed by fellow Academy Award® nominee Chiwetel Ejiofor.
Based on the book, The Short and Tragic Life of Robert Peace by Jeff Hobbs, Rob Peace’s former roommate at Yale, the film illustrates the additional burdens that often affect the lives of brilliant Black men and dissects who truly has full access to “The American Dream.”
Despite his academic success and the promise of a successful future just on the horizon, the titular character’s life takes a tragic turn as he faces several nuanced challenges at the intersection of race, class, generational trauma, and the heavy weight of the decisions he makes.
Directed, adapted by, and starring Ejiofor (12 Years a Slave), the film follows the true story of a bright young man named Rob Peace (Jay Will), torn between his father’s shadowed past and his own promising future as an Ivy League student. Raised by his devoted mother Jackie (Blige), Rob risks everything he has worked for to free his imprisoned father (Ejiofor).
In this exclusive clip, Rob’s mother urges him to focus on himself and leave the troubles of East Orange in his rearview, pleading with him to set his own life path and look forward while he has a moment to breathe.
Rob Peace opens in theaters August 16, 2o24.