Colman Domingo’s Directorial Debut Will Be About an American Icon

The Big Picture

• Emmy winner Colman Domingo is set to make his directorial debut for a feature film, which he co-wrote and is a movie musical.
• Domingo is excited to handle the challenge of writing, directing, and leading the cast of a feature film.
• Domingo’s upcoming film Rustin, in which he portrays civil rights icon Bayard Rustin, is earning critical acclaim and will be released on Netflix on November 17th.

2023 has been a massive year for Emmy winner Colman Domingo. After years of putting together a stacked resume of supporting roles in hit films like Lincoln and Selma, he finally earned the chance to be the lead in a film in George C. Wolfe‘s biopic Rustin about the oft-overlooked civil rights icon. Following what’s been hailed as an Oscar-worthy performance, he now has his sights on even greater heights in the filmmaking world. While speaking to Collider’s Perri Nemiroff, Domingo revealed that he’s preparing to make his feature directorial debut.

When asked by Nemiroff if he had any goals that felt closer than ever after leading Rustin, the star responded, “I do. I do. I can’t say it just yet, but I’m going to make my directorial debut for a feature film, playing an American icon. I co-wrote the script, and it’s a movie musical. [Laughs]” This wouldn’t be Domingo’s first time calling the shots. While playing Victor Strand in AMC’s Fear the Walking Dead, he got the chance to direct three episodes of the show, making him the first actor in The Walking Dead universe to jump behind the camera. He also has experience co-writing the short film New Moon with his screenwriter husband Raúl Domingo. Writing and directing a feature film, however, is another level of challenge, especially when also leading the cast.

Domingo is confident he can pull off this tenuous balancing act, however, even if it means getting a bit of help from others who’ve done it in the past:

“I don’t know if I’m gonna lose my mind or what because I’m like, ‘Okay, I’m going from my first leading role in a feature film to now slash, slash, slash, slash doing everything in the world.’ So I might have to get some pointers and tips from Bradley Cooper and people like that to say, ‘Am I crazy?’ But I actually feel like I’m up for the task because I know that I see it visually, I understand it dramaturgically, and I feel like it’s like a painting. I want to do the whole painting, and I can be in it at the same time.”

What’s Next for Colman Domingo After ‘Rustin’

More is likely to come from Domingo as his project draws closer, but he has plenty to look forward to beyond his directorial debut. With Rustin, which arrives on Netflix on November 17, he finally gives Bayard Rustin, the openly gay advisor to Martin Luther King Jr. who was key to orchestrating the civil rights movement in America and, specifically, the March on Washington, his due. He gets to share the screen with some big names including Chris Rock, Aml Ameen, Glynn Turman, Gus Halper, CCH Pounder, Da’Vine Joy Randolph, Johnny Ramey, Michael Potts, Jeffrey Wright, and Audra McDonald among others. In 2024, he’ll get to rub elbows with more A-list stars in Ethan Coen‘s first solo film Drive-Away Dolls which features Margaret Qualley and Geraldine Viswanathan alongside Pedro Pascal, Matt Damon, and Beanie Feldstein.

Stay tuned here at Collider for more on Domingo’s debut film as a director. Rustin is in select theaters now and arrives on Netflix on November 17. Read our review for what to expect heading into the biopic.

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