Genius (2017) s04e02 Episode Script
Who We Are
1
NARRATOR: Previously on Genius.
ELLA MAE: There's only two
kinds of people in this world,
those who hustle and
those who get hustled.
KING SR.: Moment you were born,
I knew that God had given me a son who
was destined for great things.
KING JR.: There's no basis
in the Constitution or
in the Bible for
treating Negros less human.
LITTLE: There's this messenger,
the Honorable Elijah Muhammad
who leads us.
CORETTA: You remember
the theology student?
KING JR.: Yeah, you're
looking at a man on a mission,
and it starts with seeing you again.
MALCOLM: Dear Holy Apostle,
I was in prison
long before the iron gates
closed on my life.
The same old story ♪
WILLIAMS: I'd like to make a toast.
MALCOLM: Woman, if you don't drink.
WILLIAMS: Red, it'll be quick.
I love you. I really do, Red.
Every part of you.
And I wanna spend the
rest of my life with you.
MALCOLM: Baby, are
you proposing to me?
WILLIAMS: No. That's your job.
But I am saying I
see a future with you.
MALCOLM: Really? And what do you see?
WILLIAMS: Our future.
Things like a house.
Babies.
You see it, too?
MALCOLM: I see us finishing
these drinks here.
And then moving over
to that bed over there.
WILLIAMS: Then what?
MALCOLM: And then I'll show
you how much I love you.
But it's new to me ♪
♪
LITTLE: That iron put a
new crease in that suit.
MALCOLM: Yeah, I'm just
glad to have that prison
steamed off of me.
LITTLE: Ah, you do look lighter.
MALCOLM: I feel lighter.
Wish I could say the same for you.
LITTLE: Go easy.
Not all of us could eat
as much ice cream as you and
still look like a teenager.
MALCOLM: Well, what can I say?
Allah truly is great.
LITTLE: Indeed, he is.
MALCOLM: Man, I remember you
chasin' chickens on the farm.
And now you are minister
of the Harlem Temple.
I'm proud of you, Reginald.
LITTLE: Once you get settled,
you should come and visit.
I've been talking to my
secretary for so long about you,
it'd be nice to put
a face to the name.
Ooh, we should get going.
I told Wilfred we'll be
at his place by 6:00.
MALCOLM: Uh-uh. Wilfred can wait.
I wanna go to the Temple.
LITTLE: Malcolm, we're going
to the Temple in the morning.
MALCOLM: I would like
to go to the Temple now.
I don't wanna wait for the morning.
What is it?
LITTLE: I'm not supposed
to say anything,
but Wilfred, Hilda, and Ella Mae,
they planned a
welcome home party for you.
I told them you wouldn't
want one, but Wilfred insisted,
and you know how he gets.
Plus, Ella Mae drove
all the way from Boston.
MALCOLM: Man, you know the
one thing that kept me going
my last few years in prison?
It was knowing that one day,
I would actually walk
into a Temple as a free man.
A free Muslim man.
I'm not waiting another day.
We're going to the temple.
MUHAMMAD: My beloved
Brothers and Sisters,
there can be no greater leader
in America that can do more for
the so-called Negro as
much as what Islam has done
for you and I.
I see the beautiful faces of
men and women who have traveled
a similar journey.
A journey made far too difficult,
but one that is filled with promise.
In fact, I see Brother
Malcolm sitting among us.
Brother, if you would stand.
It's all right.
Brother Malcolm stands before
us tall, proud, and strong.
But, like many of us,
it didn't start that way.
Like myself, it took years in
the shackles of the "master"
for him to find his true
calling through Islam.
My point is that we, as men and women,
do not have to go through
torment and imprisonment to
find our light, because it is here.
So thank you, Brother Malcolm,
for being that light,
for your letters, for your
discipline while in bondage.
And thank you for your
commitment to Allah.
As much as the nation
can offer us inspiration,
so too can we be to each other.
And you are to be.
CROWD: All praise is due to Allah for
the Honorable Elijah Muhammad
All praise is due to Allah for
the Honorable Elijah Muhammad!
CLYDE X: Pleasure to meet you.
We could always use
another good brother.
MALCOLM X: I'm humbled to
be a willing servant of Allah
in any way I can.
MUHAMMAD: I hope I
didn't embarrass you.
MALCOLM X: Any recognition
from you is an honor, sir.
MUHAMMAD: An honor earned,
Brother Malcolm.
I meant every word.
I look forward to your future,
and the great things
you will do growing the Nation.
MALCOLM X: Your
Honorable One, if I may.
How can I do it?
MUHAMMAD: You've been a
criminal and a prisoner.
You've come to the other side
and learned to embrace Allah.
Let your light shine on our
people and bring them to us.
Go after the young people.
Once you get them, well,
the older ones will
follow through shame.
MALCOLM X: I'm here
from the Nation of Islam and
I'm here to tell
you that the Nation of Islam
doesn't just see your dignity,
it asks you to embrace
it with both of your hands and
with all of your being.
That you have been bitten
by the snake, so the snake is,
of course, gonna run back
and tell the other snakes
that he's preaching
the gospel of hate.
But it is not a gospel of hate,
it is a gospel of hell.
Now, if there is a snake in
the field that has been biting
your brothers and sisters,
is that a gospel of hate,
or is that a gospel of hell?
I would say it is a gospel of hell.
It's just that my love for
my people is so intense,
it's so great,
it is so overwhelming
that I must inform you,
and it would be remiss
of me not to inform you,
and it would be remiss of you
not to notify your brothers and
sisters now that you
have stood here and graced me
with your time.
KING JR.: I am not who you think I am,
but what I do have,
what I have come here today with,
is a feeling deep in my
marrow that my calling,
to preach and lead
God's people, our people,
past the high walls of
despair and depravity,
and into the lush garden
of hope and humanity.
And I believe I can do that
here at Twelfth Baptist,
at Second Baptist, at Concord Baptist.
DEACON: Dr. King, it's
clear that you recognize that
the call to pastorate is
a calling and not a job.
Our only concern is
your unique pedigree.
Your father,
Reverend King Sr. in Atlanta,
is somewhat of a race man
with the reputation for.
DEACON 2: Stirring the pot.
DEACON 3: Pissing off the White folk.
DEACON: We understand that
certain tactics are needed in
the South to combat
the evils of Jim Crow,
but you need to know that
well-established churches in
Boston are looking for a pastor,
but not a prophet.
The question for you is, is
this something that you want?
ALBERTA: But everyone
is just so proud of you.
We're looking forward to
you visiting over Christmas.
KING JR.: I'm looking
forward to it as well.
We both are.
ALBERTA: Both?
KING JR. (OVER PHONE):
Yeah, me and Coretta.
ALBERTA: Oh, I, I
didn't know it was so serious
you'd invite her home for Christmas.
ALBERTA (OVER PHONE): You know
your father's got plans for you
of coming back to
ALBERTA: Co-pastor
with him at Ebenezer and
marrying a nice girl from one of those
ALBERTA (OVER PHONE):
Socially prominent families
from the West Side.
KING JR.: Well, I've dated
everyone in Atlanta and no one
was the right match.
ALBERTA: Yes, I am aware
of your extensive history.
KING JR.: What can I say, Momma,
the girls have sometimes
gone wild over the old boy.
ALBERTA: Uh-hmm.
KING JR.: But I, I care for Coretta.
Deeper than I have for anyone else.
ALBERTA: Baby, I will always
support you, you know that.
ALBERTA (OVER PHONE):
Unfortunately, I'm not the one
who needs to be won over.
Serbarla a ricordo d'amor! ♪
Addio ♪
Addio ♪
Senza ♪
Rancor ♪
KING JR.: They'd be
fools not to cast you.
CORETTA: Says the man who
a few months ago had never
even heard an opera.
KING JR.: But I know
talent when I see it.
CORETTA: Eyes on the food, Casanova.
KING JR.: We both know you
aren't here to do your laundry.
You're here for my cooking.
CORETTA: I'm a starving student.
Free trumps good.
Hey, you think Billy Eckstine is gonna
move into Carolle Drake's
home or is she going to
move into his?
KING JR.: Bet he's buying them
a brand new place somewhere.
Something fancy by the beach, maybe?
CORETTA: Or she's buying it.
KING JR.: Yeah, right.
CORETTA: Why not?
She's as famous as he is.
KING JR.: Yeah, but I don't
know many men who allow their
wives to buy a house for them.
I know I wouldn't.
CORETTA: Needs salt.
KING JR.: Needs salt?
Woman, please, I've been
making this recipe for years.
I ain't never had any complaints.
CORETTA: Uh-hmm.
KING JR.: You know,
after I get my pastor job,
we should move into one of
those big fancy penthouses in
Roxbury Park somewhere
with a view of the river.
CORETTA: So that's your plan?
KING JR.: Yeah, why not?
But if you don't like that,
we could always do New York.
Detroit. Hell, maybe even Paris.
Me and you walking the
Seine every morning,
eatin' baguettes or
getting fancied up and
taking in the show at the
Palais Garnier every night.
CORETTA: It's pronounced
Palais Garnier.
KING JR.: Yeah, I don't
hear the difference.
CORETTA: Boy, it's a
good thing you're funny.
KING JR.: I'll take
funny and sexy any day.
CORETTA: I never said you were sexy.
KING JR.: No, but you was thinking it.
Right now ♪
The impossible will
take a little while ♪
I say I'll care forever ♪
And I ♪
KING JR.: What are you doing?
CORETTA: I think I'm ready
to do my laundry now.
Have to hold up the sky ♪
Crazy he calls me ♪
And sure, I'm crazy ♪
Crazy in love ♪
Am I ♪
PATRON: Um, I'll just
have a coffee, please.
(OVERLAPPING CHATTER)
WILLIAMS: Is it as good as Ruby's?
Now summertime's here, babe ♪
Need somethin' to keep you cool ♪
WILLIAMS: Well, this is a surprise.
Now summertime ♪
- MALCOLM X: Hey.
- WILLIAMS: Hey.
MALCOLM X: It's good
to see you, Evelyn.
It's been a long time.
Hey, little girl,
I got somethin' for you ♪
♪
MALCOLM X: I don't know.
Ruby's is kind of close to my heart.
So
WILLIAMS: You sure?
You know I could always
tell when you were lying.
MALCOLM X: Yeah.
I remember you saying it was
anytime my lips were moving.
WILLIAMS: Uh-hmm.
MALCOLM X: I don't do that anymore.
WILLIAMS: Hmm, move your lips?
That's a shame.
So you found your way
back to Boston and you ain't
wanna look me up?
MALCOLM X: Want is a relative word.
WILLIAMS: You do look good.
MALCOLM X: I could
say the same about you.
WILLIAMS: Well, don't let me stop you.
Shoot.
MALCOLM X: You look good.
- WILLIAMS: Thank you.
- MALCOLM X: Uh-hmm.
Hey, you, uh, ever
get that teaching job you
were looking for?
WILLIAMS: You remember that?
MALCOLM X: Of course I do.
You used to talk my ear
off about it all the time.
WILLIAMS: Well, what
19-year-old knows what she
wanna do with the
rest of her life, right?
'Sides, what I remember
was your preference for a
different flavor back then.
MALCOLM X: Well, I'm no
longer about that life.
WILLIAMS: The hustling
or the White girls?
MALCOLM X: Any of it.
I've dedicated my life Allah,
thanks to the teachings of the
Honorable Elijah Muhammad,
the leader of the Nation of Islam.
WILLIAMS: You really
into this, ain't you?
MALCOLM X: It saved my life.
WILLIAMS: Hmm.
MALCOLM X: You know,
if you'd be willing,
I'm happy to talk more about it.
WILLIAMS: Yeah.
I work over at Clementine's,
get off at midnight.
Why don't you, um, come
on down to the club then?
Every one of my flavors, girl ♪
♪
(OVERLAPPING CHATTER AND MUSIC)
♪
MALCOLM X: I thought you worked here?
WILLIAMS: I do, most nights.
MALCOLM X: What are
you trying to do, Evelyn?
WILLIAMS: Dancing. You should be, too.
MALCOLM X: Well,
this is not my groove.
WILLIAMS: But it used to be.
I'd imagine it still is.
MALCOLM X: Yeah?
Well, I didn't come to dance.
I came to see you
and talk about Islam.
- WILLIAMS: I know.
- MALCOLM X: The Nation.
WILLIAMS: We have
plenty of time for that.
Just relax.
Yeah?
It's about me and you.
Now move.
MALCOLM X: Ev.
Stop now. That's enough.
WILLIAMS: Red, stop talking.
MALCOLM X: That's enough.
WILLIAMS: Stop talking and just feel.
Come on. This is the best part.
WOMAN: Go ahead, girl.
♪
♪
♪
♪
MALCOLM X: I never
imagined I'd see you again.
WILLIAMS: Well, you never were
good at seeing around corners.
MALCOLM X: Well, who is?
You are not no better.
WILLIAMS: Please.
You could never surprise me.
♪
ALBERTA: Martin tells us
you're studying to be a singer.
KING JR.: An opera singer.
She's up for the lead in La bomème.
That's a very famous Italian opera.
ALBERTA: How'd you come to that?
CORETTA: My mother.
She was determined my sister
and I get an education and
put as much distance
between ourselves and Alabama
as we could.
And music provided that escape route,
so I'd never have to go back.
KING SR.: So underneath
all this opera singin',
you just a country girl, huh?
CORETTA: Yes, sir.
From a small town outside Montgomery.
KING SR.: Martin,
go ahead and open it.
Mrs. Chamberlain wanted
to have me pay twice the
usual amount
because it's a custom fit,
but when I told her it was for you,
she did it on the house.
Now, you're gonna be
working with me as my
co-pastor at Ebenezer,
I figured you should
have one of your own.
KING JR.: Well, Daddy, I'm,
I appreciate the
offer but I, uh, I'm still
considering my
other options in Boston.
KING SR.: So you
haven't found a job yet.
KING JR.: No, not yet.
But, um, when Coretta
and I get back to Boston,
I have an interview set up
at Tremont Temple Baptist.
CORETTA: You know, the
congregation has close
to 250 parishioners.
One of the biggest in all of Roxbury.
KING SR.: By the way,
you know who I ran into just
the other day, Martin?
Mabel Wilson.
You remember her, right?
It's a shame you two called it quits.
That girl was a catch.
I'm talking about
someone with much to share
and much to offer.
CORETTA: I have
something to offer as well.
I think I'm going to
turn in for the night.
This was lovely, Mrs. King.
KING SR.: Where is he going?
ALBERTA: Fix it.
KING JR.: I didn't
appreciate the way that you
talked to Coretta.
KING SR.: She is a
wonderful young lady.
Girl's got a fire.
"I have something to offer as well."
I know my approach can
sometimes be a bit sharp.
KING JR.: Hmm.
KING SR.: But I only
want what's best for you.
KING JR.: How do you
know that Coretta isn't?
KING SR.: Maybe because
you haven't bothered to
tell me why she is.
Your future is ahead of you.
It's why it's great for
you to come join me here.
Give you time to figure
these things out.
KING JR.: I don't wanna
join you at Ebenezer.
KING SR.: Of course you do.
It's what we've always talked about.
KING JR.: No.
It's what you've always talked about.
You never asked me, you told me.
You're always telling.
KING SR.: Hmm.
KING JR.: You like being Daddy King.
You're good at it.
And there's nothing wrong with that.
But if I were to come
and join you at Ebenezer,
all I'll ever be is Daddy King's son.
I wanna be more than that.
I need to be.
But I need you to let me.
KING SR.: Hey, listen, I have a
friend at Dexter Avenue Baptist
down in Montgomery,
and he's been asking me
for a while to come and
give a guest sermon,
but I've not been able to do it.
It's only a three-hour
drive and you can have Coretta
stay with us.
I know your mother
would love to spend some
more time with her.
As would I.
KING JR.: I suppose I can do that.
(KNOCK)
You're going somewhere?
CORETTA: I'm going back to Boston.
KING JR.: Look, I just
wanted come in and apologize
for earlier tonight.
Corrie, will you stop
and listen for a second?
CORETTA: Why?
KING JR.: 'Cause I wanna talk to you.
CORETTA: So now you want to talk?
Why don't you go talk to
Delinda or Savannah or whoever
else your father has lined up for you?
KING JR.: Because I
don't want any of them.
CORETTA: And, you know,
I don't care what
your daddy has to say about me
because I know who I am.
What I found out
tonight is who you are.
KING JR.: What's that
supposed to mean, Corrie?
CORETTA: You know, this
is probably for the best,
'cause I don't need to be
with a man who isn't
strong enough to stand up for me.
I didn't come here to
this dinner for that.
KING JR.: Corrie,
wait, wait, wait, wait.
CORETTA: Why didn't
you stand up for me?
Am I not worth fighting for?
KING JR.: You wanna know what
I told him you have to offer?
Your heart, which is warm and full,
and you share it with me every day.
Your mind, which constantly
challenges me to be the best
version of myself I can be.
And your soul, which
you pledged to God like a
good Christian should.
And if I'm lucky
Your hand.
Will you marry me?
CORETTA: Yes. Yes.
♪
(WHIMPERING)
(APPLAUSE)
MALCOLM X: The White man,
with his shackles and bondage,
has convinced us that even
the simplest of rights,
like freedom of education,
are up for negotiation.
And we fell for it.
Hook, line, and sinker.
Now, I've been to Detroit,
Philadelphia, Chicago,
and even for our Southern
folks here, Edgewood.
The same truth exists
up and down this so-called
"land of the free."
We're all still negotiating
something that should be ours.
So what's the solution?
Pride and dignity within self.
MAN: Yes, yes!
MALCOLM X: Caring about who we are,
and when we understand our
worth and have pride within it,
so too will everyone else.
And through Islam
and the leadership of
the Honorable Elijah Muhammad,
this will be our foundation
as we move forward.
But we need your commitment.
And so I ask each
and everyone here today,
do we have it?
(APPLAUSE)
I see our youth in the back.
Do we have it?
CROWD: Yes, yes!
MALCOLM X: And, again,
through Allah, let's work.
MAN: Yes, sir. Yes, sir.
MUHAMMAD: I weighed whether
or not I wanted to view
your words in person.
I feared my presence
might alter your message.
But to hear and feel the
people's response up close
was truly inspiring.
I've been hearing about
your recruiting for some time.
Your exploits are
reverberating throughout the
Nation of Islam with great pride.
MALCOLM X: Thank you,
your Honorable One.
Praise to Allah.
And please know, had I
known you would be here.
MUHAMMAD: No need for explanation.
Like I said, I was inspired.
Now, my time is brief, and I
wanted to discuss an important
matter with you that has
come to my attention,
one that I need your help with.
MALCOLM X: Of course.
Anything the Nation needs,
I am fully committed and, of course,
to you personally.
MUHAMMAD: As I anticipated.
The matter though involves
someone close to you.
Your brother, Reginald.
MALCOLM X: Reginald? What's going on?
MUHAMMAD: He will be relieved
of his duties in the Nation.
We cannot turn a blind eye to
inappropriate relationships.
MALCOLM X: I'm, I'm sorry.
You must be mistaken.
Reginald wouldn't do
something like that.
MUHAMMAD: I would not
make a move if I didn't know.
He went against the
foundation of who we are.
You don't doubt me do you, Malcolm?
In your final letter from prison,
you said there is no
sacrifice too great for me
to make in your service.
Is this no longer true?
MALCOLM X: Of course not.
I am at your service always.
MUHAMMAD: I'm glad to hear it.
Now, with Reginald gone,
we need to replace him.
Is this, is this something you can do?
(OVERLAPPING CHATTER)
(KNOCK)
KING JR.: Edythe said
you wanted to see me?
Corrie, you know it's
bad luck to see the bride
before the wedding.
Oh.
You look, you look dazzling.
Oh, Corrie, what's wrong?
CORETTA: I can't do this.
I won't say the
vows about "obeying" and
"submitting to your husband."
I'm not gonna do this
with you if I'm going to be
your servant or your
concubine or some sort of
glorified housekeeper.
This needs to be an equal
partnership if it's gonna work.
KING JR.: I agree with you.
CORETTA: What about Daddy King?
KING JR.: Well, it's
not his wedding day.
It's ours.
And no one's gonna tell
us how it should go except
you and me,
if that's all right
with you, Mrs. King.
CORETTA: It's all right with me.
KING JR.: Hmm.
CORETTA: Dr. King.
KING JR.: I ain't see nothing.
God as my witness, I
did not see nothing.
Our love is timeless, ♪
Forever young ♪
Yeah ♪
Our love is timeless ♪
Yeah ♪
Forever young ♪
Yeah. ♪
We were made to last forever ♪
Ever. Ever baby ♪
Forever young ♪
Hey ♪
Forever young ♪
Real love ♪
We were made to last forever ♪
KING SR.: May I have this dance?
Ever, ever, baby ♪
Forever young ♪
CORETTA: Hi, Daddy.
Forever young, forever young ♪
Forever young ♪
♪
(KNOCK)
MR. WILSON: No vacancies
anywhere else in town, hmm?
CORETTA: Not for us.
MR. WILSON: Come on.
- CORETTA: Thank you.
- KING JR.: Thank you.
MR. WILSON: Uh-hmm.
Well, congratulations, y'all.
- KING JR.: Thank you.
- CORETTA: Thank you.
MR. WILSON: Bedrooms are upstairs.
(MAKES OWL SOUNDS)
(LAUGHTER)
CORETTA: Oh, my.
KING JR.: Well?
At least, we'll have a funny
story to tell our kids about
how we spent the wedding night.
CORETTA: Kids?
KING JR.: I told you
I'm a man on a mission.
CORETTA: Oh.
KING JR.: Uh-hmm. What's wrong?
CORETTA: I can't wait
to get out of the South.
Whoa!
(DOOR LOCKS)
KING JR.: Just in case.
MALCOLM X: Can we talk?
WILLIAMS: Yeah. Just getting paid.
Maybe we can go get breakfast.
I know a great flapjack place
around the corner from here.
MALCOLM X: I was
just named minister of
Temple No. 7 in Harlem.
WILLIAMS: Wow. Congratulations.
So what does that mean?
MALCOLM X: Well, with
this opportunity comes the
responsibility to focus
solely on the Nation,
and that means putting my
past behind me along with
everyone associated with it.
WILLIAMS: What are you saying, Red?
Right.
So last night was just
MALCOLM X: A mistake. I'm sorry.
You know me as "Detroit Red."
You always have and always will.
But I've changed, okay?
I'm not Red.
I'm Malcolm.
WILLIAMS: Well, I guess I'd
look pretty stupid right now if
I'd let myself believe
last night was real.
If I had just thought
for one second what a life
with you would look like.
The places we'd go,
the things we'd do.
I guess I'd be pretty stupid
if I let myself get lost in
any of that.
MALCOLM X: Yeah, well,
you're not stupid.
WILLIAMS: I know I'm not.
And you haven't changed.
You are still the same
impulsive person you
have always been.
Only now instead of bad choices,
you are hiding behind somebody
else making them for you.
MALCOLM X: I made
this decision myself.
WILLIAMS: Did you ever
even care about me?
MALCOLM X: Listen, I
meant what I said about
the Nation, okay?
It saved my life.
And it can do the same
for you if you allow it,
and I hope that you do.
♪
Ooh ♪
Ooh ♪
Rock me to sleep ♪
Backward, turn backward, oh, time, ♪
In your flight ♪
Make me a child again
just for tonight ♪
And, Mother, come back
from your echoless shores ♪
And hold me again to
your heart as of yore ♪
And then when we meet,
I shall nevermore weep ♪
For, oh, Mother, once again
you can rock me to sleep ♪
Ooh ♪
Ooh. ♪
Oh, teach me what to say ♪
KING JR.: Good morning.
ALL: Good morning.
KING JR.: I had a, another
sermon I intended to preach
to you today.
One that encompass all that
I have learned in my many,
many years of education and
preaching at my father's hip.
MAN: Yeah. Yes. Yes.
- WOMAN: Well, well.
- MAN: Uh-hmm.
KING JR.: But I feel that
that sermon no longer speaks
to the emotion I now have.
I, instead, would like to use
it as a topic from which to
preach a very common subject.
MAN: Okay.
KING JR.: One wondered by many
a people on many a land across
every continent, in every
country, in every state,
in every city on this God's planet.
- MAN: Oh, yeah.
- WOMAN: All right.
WOMAN: Okay.
KING JR.: A subject that,
despite this being my first
time at your pulpit, I
have no doubt that we share
a unique commonality.
- WOMAN: Right.
- MAN: All right.
WOMAN: Okay.
KING JR.: The subject of who we are.
MAN: All right, yes, yeah.
WOMAN: Right, who we are.
KING JR.: And who we are
is God's glory personified.
ALL: Yes, yes.
KING JR.: When I look out at you,
I see we are mothers and fathers.
MAN: Yeah.
KING JR.: We are sisters and brothers.
- WOMAN: Yes.
- MAN: Yeah.
- MAN: Yes, we are.
- WOMAN: Yes, we are.
KING JR.: Men and women.
But if we let others
tell it, we are slaves.
We are second-class.
We are agitators banging
at the door of segregation,
asking to be let into
the house of equality.
Well, in this moment,
I say we stop asking and
we start demanding.
- MAN: All right.
- ALL: Yeah, yes.
KING JR.: In this moment,
we say equality is not a dirty
word whispered in the
valley of despair but screamed
from the peaks of prosperity.
ALL: Yes, yes.
KING JR.: In this moment, we
soar among the winds of change.
In this moment.
MAN: Yeah, yeah.
KING JR.: We will demand
change no matter what we face
because we have
righteousness on our side.
MAN: All right, all right, all right.
KING JR.: Because we
have love on our side.
And because we have God on our side.
MAN: All right. Hallelujah.
ALL: Yes.
(APPLAUSE)
CORETTA: Yes!
DIRECTOR: Coretta, congratulations.
We've got a lot of work to do
before our first performance,
but you deserve to celebrate.
You earned this.
CORETTA: Thank you, truly.
This is amazing.
I was just wondering,
what is the asterisk for?
DIRECTOR: Some of our
performances will be in
Southern cities, and
because you're a Negro,
for those shows, your
understudy will fill in.
CORETTA: But most of the
shows are in the South.
DIRECTOR: I am sorry.
Until the law is changed,
we have to abide by it.
CORETTA: I got the part.
KING JR.: Oh, Corrie.
That's, that's great.
CORETTA: Thank you, baby.
KING JR.: There's something
I need to tell you.
CORETTA: Uh-hmm.
KING JR.: I got offered
a, a head pastor position.
CORETTA: Oh, where?
KING JR.: At Dexter, in Montgomery.
CORETTA: I thought it
was just a guest sermon.
KING JR.: I thought so too
but it turned out it wasn't.
Corrie, I know this
wasn't part of our plan.
I know this may sound abrupt,
but I think I wanna do this.
Listen, I know how hard
you've worked on your
music career and how far you've come.
I know there'll be other
pastor opportunities for me,
but if things aren't right
for Negroes in the South,
they aren't gonna be right
anywhere in this country.
Corrie,
we both have been
afforded opportunities to go up
North and experience what
America could be for Negroes.
We need to, to pay
that forward and take these
educations we've gotten and
make where we come from better.
And it starts with us, Corrie.
CORETTA: I agree.
We should go to Montgomery.
The shadow of Jim Crow
evil looms over everything.
It's not gonna change itself.
Someone has to change it.
KING JR.: I think I
can be that someone,
but I need you by my
side when I do it.
Something remarkable is
unfolding in the South.
I can feel it.
CORETTA: Then it's best
we be on hand to witness it.
KING JR.: We will do
more than witness it.
We will lead it.
And God will show us the way.
Love, it was fun when it lasted ♪
Love, it's time for
me to go away, yeah ♪
I said, love, did you
think I was serious ♪
About what I said ♪
To you the other day? ♪
Baby, I didn't mean to hurt you ♪
Darling, I'm sorry things
turned out to be so wrong ♪
♪
LITTLE: Blow me over.
You came all this way to
Harlem and didn't tell me?
MALCOLM X: Well, it was unexpected.
Reginald, we need to talk.
LITTLE: What is it?
MALCOLM X: On behalf of
the Honorable Elijah Muhammad,
your duties within the Nation
will no longer be required.
From this point forward, your
title as Head Minister here in
Harlem is in recess and
will be further discussed
within our organization.
It's incumbent upon me to
inform you to remove your
belongings immediately.
LITTLE: Under what grounds?
MALCOLM X: Confirmation of
an inappropriate relationship.
LITTLE: And you believe it?
I didn't do what they're saying
or whatever they're saying.
And I don't need to defend myself,
especially to family.
This, this is all insane.
MALCOLM X: The Honorable
Elijah Muhammad would not
make a mistake.
LITTLE: And you're gonna
believe him over me?
If it wasn't for me, you,
you wouldn't be in the Nation.
(DISTANT THUDS)
(FOOTSTEPS APPROACHING)
Don't, don't, don't, don't do this.
CLYDE X: Brother Reginald,
it's time to go.
LITTLE: Please?
MALCOLM X: I'm sorry, Reginald.
Louder, louder than the noise ♪
Higher, higher than before ♪
Running to the wind ♪
As I pledge the sword ♪
Still you call it love, love ♪
Still you call it love, love ♪
Still you call it love. ♪
Still you call it love, love. ♪
Still you call it love. ♪
Still you call it love. ♪
Still you call it love. ♪
NARRATOR: Previously on Genius.
ELLA MAE: There's only two
kinds of people in this world,
those who hustle and
those who get hustled.
KING SR.: Moment you were born,
I knew that God had given me a son who
was destined for great things.
KING JR.: There's no basis
in the Constitution or
in the Bible for
treating Negros less human.
LITTLE: There's this messenger,
the Honorable Elijah Muhammad
who leads us.
CORETTA: You remember
the theology student?
KING JR.: Yeah, you're
looking at a man on a mission,
and it starts with seeing you again.
MALCOLM: Dear Holy Apostle,
I was in prison
long before the iron gates
closed on my life.
The same old story ♪
WILLIAMS: I'd like to make a toast.
MALCOLM: Woman, if you don't drink.
WILLIAMS: Red, it'll be quick.
I love you. I really do, Red.
Every part of you.
And I wanna spend the
rest of my life with you.
MALCOLM: Baby, are
you proposing to me?
WILLIAMS: No. That's your job.
But I am saying I
see a future with you.
MALCOLM: Really? And what do you see?
WILLIAMS: Our future.
Things like a house.
Babies.
You see it, too?
MALCOLM: I see us finishing
these drinks here.
And then moving over
to that bed over there.
WILLIAMS: Then what?
MALCOLM: And then I'll show
you how much I love you.
But it's new to me ♪
♪
LITTLE: That iron put a
new crease in that suit.
MALCOLM: Yeah, I'm just
glad to have that prison
steamed off of me.
LITTLE: Ah, you do look lighter.
MALCOLM: I feel lighter.
Wish I could say the same for you.
LITTLE: Go easy.
Not all of us could eat
as much ice cream as you and
still look like a teenager.
MALCOLM: Well, what can I say?
Allah truly is great.
LITTLE: Indeed, he is.
MALCOLM: Man, I remember you
chasin' chickens on the farm.
And now you are minister
of the Harlem Temple.
I'm proud of you, Reginald.
LITTLE: Once you get settled,
you should come and visit.
I've been talking to my
secretary for so long about you,
it'd be nice to put
a face to the name.
Ooh, we should get going.
I told Wilfred we'll be
at his place by 6:00.
MALCOLM: Uh-uh. Wilfred can wait.
I wanna go to the Temple.
LITTLE: Malcolm, we're going
to the Temple in the morning.
MALCOLM: I would like
to go to the Temple now.
I don't wanna wait for the morning.
What is it?
LITTLE: I'm not supposed
to say anything,
but Wilfred, Hilda, and Ella Mae,
they planned a
welcome home party for you.
I told them you wouldn't
want one, but Wilfred insisted,
and you know how he gets.
Plus, Ella Mae drove
all the way from Boston.
MALCOLM: Man, you know the
one thing that kept me going
my last few years in prison?
It was knowing that one day,
I would actually walk
into a Temple as a free man.
A free Muslim man.
I'm not waiting another day.
We're going to the temple.
MUHAMMAD: My beloved
Brothers and Sisters,
there can be no greater leader
in America that can do more for
the so-called Negro as
much as what Islam has done
for you and I.
I see the beautiful faces of
men and women who have traveled
a similar journey.
A journey made far too difficult,
but one that is filled with promise.
In fact, I see Brother
Malcolm sitting among us.
Brother, if you would stand.
It's all right.
Brother Malcolm stands before
us tall, proud, and strong.
But, like many of us,
it didn't start that way.
Like myself, it took years in
the shackles of the "master"
for him to find his true
calling through Islam.
My point is that we, as men and women,
do not have to go through
torment and imprisonment to
find our light, because it is here.
So thank you, Brother Malcolm,
for being that light,
for your letters, for your
discipline while in bondage.
And thank you for your
commitment to Allah.
As much as the nation
can offer us inspiration,
so too can we be to each other.
And you are to be.
CROWD: All praise is due to Allah for
the Honorable Elijah Muhammad
All praise is due to Allah for
the Honorable Elijah Muhammad!
CLYDE X: Pleasure to meet you.
We could always use
another good brother.
MALCOLM X: I'm humbled to
be a willing servant of Allah
in any way I can.
MUHAMMAD: I hope I
didn't embarrass you.
MALCOLM X: Any recognition
from you is an honor, sir.
MUHAMMAD: An honor earned,
Brother Malcolm.
I meant every word.
I look forward to your future,
and the great things
you will do growing the Nation.
MALCOLM X: Your
Honorable One, if I may.
How can I do it?
MUHAMMAD: You've been a
criminal and a prisoner.
You've come to the other side
and learned to embrace Allah.
Let your light shine on our
people and bring them to us.
Go after the young people.
Once you get them, well,
the older ones will
follow through shame.
MALCOLM X: I'm here
from the Nation of Islam and
I'm here to tell
you that the Nation of Islam
doesn't just see your dignity,
it asks you to embrace
it with both of your hands and
with all of your being.
That you have been bitten
by the snake, so the snake is,
of course, gonna run back
and tell the other snakes
that he's preaching
the gospel of hate.
But it is not a gospel of hate,
it is a gospel of hell.
Now, if there is a snake in
the field that has been biting
your brothers and sisters,
is that a gospel of hate,
or is that a gospel of hell?
I would say it is a gospel of hell.
It's just that my love for
my people is so intense,
it's so great,
it is so overwhelming
that I must inform you,
and it would be remiss
of me not to inform you,
and it would be remiss of you
not to notify your brothers and
sisters now that you
have stood here and graced me
with your time.
KING JR.: I am not who you think I am,
but what I do have,
what I have come here today with,
is a feeling deep in my
marrow that my calling,
to preach and lead
God's people, our people,
past the high walls of
despair and depravity,
and into the lush garden
of hope and humanity.
And I believe I can do that
here at Twelfth Baptist,
at Second Baptist, at Concord Baptist.
DEACON: Dr. King, it's
clear that you recognize that
the call to pastorate is
a calling and not a job.
Our only concern is
your unique pedigree.
Your father,
Reverend King Sr. in Atlanta,
is somewhat of a race man
with the reputation for.
DEACON 2: Stirring the pot.
DEACON 3: Pissing off the White folk.
DEACON: We understand that
certain tactics are needed in
the South to combat
the evils of Jim Crow,
but you need to know that
well-established churches in
Boston are looking for a pastor,
but not a prophet.
The question for you is, is
this something that you want?
ALBERTA: But everyone
is just so proud of you.
We're looking forward to
you visiting over Christmas.
KING JR.: I'm looking
forward to it as well.
We both are.
ALBERTA: Both?
KING JR. (OVER PHONE):
Yeah, me and Coretta.
ALBERTA: Oh, I, I
didn't know it was so serious
you'd invite her home for Christmas.
ALBERTA (OVER PHONE): You know
your father's got plans for you
of coming back to
ALBERTA: Co-pastor
with him at Ebenezer and
marrying a nice girl from one of those
ALBERTA (OVER PHONE):
Socially prominent families
from the West Side.
KING JR.: Well, I've dated
everyone in Atlanta and no one
was the right match.
ALBERTA: Yes, I am aware
of your extensive history.
KING JR.: What can I say, Momma,
the girls have sometimes
gone wild over the old boy.
ALBERTA: Uh-hmm.
KING JR.: But I, I care for Coretta.
Deeper than I have for anyone else.
ALBERTA: Baby, I will always
support you, you know that.
ALBERTA (OVER PHONE):
Unfortunately, I'm not the one
who needs to be won over.
Serbarla a ricordo d'amor! ♪
Addio ♪
Addio ♪
Senza ♪
Rancor ♪
KING JR.: They'd be
fools not to cast you.
CORETTA: Says the man who
a few months ago had never
even heard an opera.
KING JR.: But I know
talent when I see it.
CORETTA: Eyes on the food, Casanova.
KING JR.: We both know you
aren't here to do your laundry.
You're here for my cooking.
CORETTA: I'm a starving student.
Free trumps good.
Hey, you think Billy Eckstine is gonna
move into Carolle Drake's
home or is she going to
move into his?
KING JR.: Bet he's buying them
a brand new place somewhere.
Something fancy by the beach, maybe?
CORETTA: Or she's buying it.
KING JR.: Yeah, right.
CORETTA: Why not?
She's as famous as he is.
KING JR.: Yeah, but I don't
know many men who allow their
wives to buy a house for them.
I know I wouldn't.
CORETTA: Needs salt.
KING JR.: Needs salt?
Woman, please, I've been
making this recipe for years.
I ain't never had any complaints.
CORETTA: Uh-hmm.
KING JR.: You know,
after I get my pastor job,
we should move into one of
those big fancy penthouses in
Roxbury Park somewhere
with a view of the river.
CORETTA: So that's your plan?
KING JR.: Yeah, why not?
But if you don't like that,
we could always do New York.
Detroit. Hell, maybe even Paris.
Me and you walking the
Seine every morning,
eatin' baguettes or
getting fancied up and
taking in the show at the
Palais Garnier every night.
CORETTA: It's pronounced
Palais Garnier.
KING JR.: Yeah, I don't
hear the difference.
CORETTA: Boy, it's a
good thing you're funny.
KING JR.: I'll take
funny and sexy any day.
CORETTA: I never said you were sexy.
KING JR.: No, but you was thinking it.
Right now ♪
The impossible will
take a little while ♪
I say I'll care forever ♪
And I ♪
KING JR.: What are you doing?
CORETTA: I think I'm ready
to do my laundry now.
Have to hold up the sky ♪
Crazy he calls me ♪
And sure, I'm crazy ♪
Crazy in love ♪
Am I ♪
PATRON: Um, I'll just
have a coffee, please.
(OVERLAPPING CHATTER)
WILLIAMS: Is it as good as Ruby's?
Now summertime's here, babe ♪
Need somethin' to keep you cool ♪
WILLIAMS: Well, this is a surprise.
Now summertime ♪
- MALCOLM X: Hey.
- WILLIAMS: Hey.
MALCOLM X: It's good
to see you, Evelyn.
It's been a long time.
Hey, little girl,
I got somethin' for you ♪
♪
MALCOLM X: I don't know.
Ruby's is kind of close to my heart.
So
WILLIAMS: You sure?
You know I could always
tell when you were lying.
MALCOLM X: Yeah.
I remember you saying it was
anytime my lips were moving.
WILLIAMS: Uh-hmm.
MALCOLM X: I don't do that anymore.
WILLIAMS: Hmm, move your lips?
That's a shame.
So you found your way
back to Boston and you ain't
wanna look me up?
MALCOLM X: Want is a relative word.
WILLIAMS: You do look good.
MALCOLM X: I could
say the same about you.
WILLIAMS: Well, don't let me stop you.
Shoot.
MALCOLM X: You look good.
- WILLIAMS: Thank you.
- MALCOLM X: Uh-hmm.
Hey, you, uh, ever
get that teaching job you
were looking for?
WILLIAMS: You remember that?
MALCOLM X: Of course I do.
You used to talk my ear
off about it all the time.
WILLIAMS: Well, what
19-year-old knows what she
wanna do with the
rest of her life, right?
'Sides, what I remember
was your preference for a
different flavor back then.
MALCOLM X: Well, I'm no
longer about that life.
WILLIAMS: The hustling
or the White girls?
MALCOLM X: Any of it.
I've dedicated my life Allah,
thanks to the teachings of the
Honorable Elijah Muhammad,
the leader of the Nation of Islam.
WILLIAMS: You really
into this, ain't you?
MALCOLM X: It saved my life.
WILLIAMS: Hmm.
MALCOLM X: You know,
if you'd be willing,
I'm happy to talk more about it.
WILLIAMS: Yeah.
I work over at Clementine's,
get off at midnight.
Why don't you, um, come
on down to the club then?
Every one of my flavors, girl ♪
♪
(OVERLAPPING CHATTER AND MUSIC)
♪
MALCOLM X: I thought you worked here?
WILLIAMS: I do, most nights.
MALCOLM X: What are
you trying to do, Evelyn?
WILLIAMS: Dancing. You should be, too.
MALCOLM X: Well,
this is not my groove.
WILLIAMS: But it used to be.
I'd imagine it still is.
MALCOLM X: Yeah?
Well, I didn't come to dance.
I came to see you
and talk about Islam.
- WILLIAMS: I know.
- MALCOLM X: The Nation.
WILLIAMS: We have
plenty of time for that.
Just relax.
Yeah?
It's about me and you.
Now move.
MALCOLM X: Ev.
Stop now. That's enough.
WILLIAMS: Red, stop talking.
MALCOLM X: That's enough.
WILLIAMS: Stop talking and just feel.
Come on. This is the best part.
WOMAN: Go ahead, girl.
♪
♪
♪
♪
MALCOLM X: I never
imagined I'd see you again.
WILLIAMS: Well, you never were
good at seeing around corners.
MALCOLM X: Well, who is?
You are not no better.
WILLIAMS: Please.
You could never surprise me.
♪
ALBERTA: Martin tells us
you're studying to be a singer.
KING JR.: An opera singer.
She's up for the lead in La bomème.
That's a very famous Italian opera.
ALBERTA: How'd you come to that?
CORETTA: My mother.
She was determined my sister
and I get an education and
put as much distance
between ourselves and Alabama
as we could.
And music provided that escape route,
so I'd never have to go back.
KING SR.: So underneath
all this opera singin',
you just a country girl, huh?
CORETTA: Yes, sir.
From a small town outside Montgomery.
KING SR.: Martin,
go ahead and open it.
Mrs. Chamberlain wanted
to have me pay twice the
usual amount
because it's a custom fit,
but when I told her it was for you,
she did it on the house.
Now, you're gonna be
working with me as my
co-pastor at Ebenezer,
I figured you should
have one of your own.
KING JR.: Well, Daddy, I'm,
I appreciate the
offer but I, uh, I'm still
considering my
other options in Boston.
KING SR.: So you
haven't found a job yet.
KING JR.: No, not yet.
But, um, when Coretta
and I get back to Boston,
I have an interview set up
at Tremont Temple Baptist.
CORETTA: You know, the
congregation has close
to 250 parishioners.
One of the biggest in all of Roxbury.
KING SR.: By the way,
you know who I ran into just
the other day, Martin?
Mabel Wilson.
You remember her, right?
It's a shame you two called it quits.
That girl was a catch.
I'm talking about
someone with much to share
and much to offer.
CORETTA: I have
something to offer as well.
I think I'm going to
turn in for the night.
This was lovely, Mrs. King.
KING SR.: Where is he going?
ALBERTA: Fix it.
KING JR.: I didn't
appreciate the way that you
talked to Coretta.
KING SR.: She is a
wonderful young lady.
Girl's got a fire.
"I have something to offer as well."
I know my approach can
sometimes be a bit sharp.
KING JR.: Hmm.
KING SR.: But I only
want what's best for you.
KING JR.: How do you
know that Coretta isn't?
KING SR.: Maybe because
you haven't bothered to
tell me why she is.
Your future is ahead of you.
It's why it's great for
you to come join me here.
Give you time to figure
these things out.
KING JR.: I don't wanna
join you at Ebenezer.
KING SR.: Of course you do.
It's what we've always talked about.
KING JR.: No.
It's what you've always talked about.
You never asked me, you told me.
You're always telling.
KING SR.: Hmm.
KING JR.: You like being Daddy King.
You're good at it.
And there's nothing wrong with that.
But if I were to come
and join you at Ebenezer,
all I'll ever be is Daddy King's son.
I wanna be more than that.
I need to be.
But I need you to let me.
KING SR.: Hey, listen, I have a
friend at Dexter Avenue Baptist
down in Montgomery,
and he's been asking me
for a while to come and
give a guest sermon,
but I've not been able to do it.
It's only a three-hour
drive and you can have Coretta
stay with us.
I know your mother
would love to spend some
more time with her.
As would I.
KING JR.: I suppose I can do that.
(KNOCK)
You're going somewhere?
CORETTA: I'm going back to Boston.
KING JR.: Look, I just
wanted come in and apologize
for earlier tonight.
Corrie, will you stop
and listen for a second?
CORETTA: Why?
KING JR.: 'Cause I wanna talk to you.
CORETTA: So now you want to talk?
Why don't you go talk to
Delinda or Savannah or whoever
else your father has lined up for you?
KING JR.: Because I
don't want any of them.
CORETTA: And, you know,
I don't care what
your daddy has to say about me
because I know who I am.
What I found out
tonight is who you are.
KING JR.: What's that
supposed to mean, Corrie?
CORETTA: You know, this
is probably for the best,
'cause I don't need to be
with a man who isn't
strong enough to stand up for me.
I didn't come here to
this dinner for that.
KING JR.: Corrie,
wait, wait, wait, wait.
CORETTA: Why didn't
you stand up for me?
Am I not worth fighting for?
KING JR.: You wanna know what
I told him you have to offer?
Your heart, which is warm and full,
and you share it with me every day.
Your mind, which constantly
challenges me to be the best
version of myself I can be.
And your soul, which
you pledged to God like a
good Christian should.
And if I'm lucky
Your hand.
Will you marry me?
CORETTA: Yes. Yes.
♪
(WHIMPERING)
(APPLAUSE)
MALCOLM X: The White man,
with his shackles and bondage,
has convinced us that even
the simplest of rights,
like freedom of education,
are up for negotiation.
And we fell for it.
Hook, line, and sinker.
Now, I've been to Detroit,
Philadelphia, Chicago,
and even for our Southern
folks here, Edgewood.
The same truth exists
up and down this so-called
"land of the free."
We're all still negotiating
something that should be ours.
So what's the solution?
Pride and dignity within self.
MAN: Yes, yes!
MALCOLM X: Caring about who we are,
and when we understand our
worth and have pride within it,
so too will everyone else.
And through Islam
and the leadership of
the Honorable Elijah Muhammad,
this will be our foundation
as we move forward.
But we need your commitment.
And so I ask each
and everyone here today,
do we have it?
(APPLAUSE)
I see our youth in the back.
Do we have it?
CROWD: Yes, yes!
MALCOLM X: And, again,
through Allah, let's work.
MAN: Yes, sir. Yes, sir.
MUHAMMAD: I weighed whether
or not I wanted to view
your words in person.
I feared my presence
might alter your message.
But to hear and feel the
people's response up close
was truly inspiring.
I've been hearing about
your recruiting for some time.
Your exploits are
reverberating throughout the
Nation of Islam with great pride.
MALCOLM X: Thank you,
your Honorable One.
Praise to Allah.
And please know, had I
known you would be here.
MUHAMMAD: No need for explanation.
Like I said, I was inspired.
Now, my time is brief, and I
wanted to discuss an important
matter with you that has
come to my attention,
one that I need your help with.
MALCOLM X: Of course.
Anything the Nation needs,
I am fully committed and, of course,
to you personally.
MUHAMMAD: As I anticipated.
The matter though involves
someone close to you.
Your brother, Reginald.
MALCOLM X: Reginald? What's going on?
MUHAMMAD: He will be relieved
of his duties in the Nation.
We cannot turn a blind eye to
inappropriate relationships.
MALCOLM X: I'm, I'm sorry.
You must be mistaken.
Reginald wouldn't do
something like that.
MUHAMMAD: I would not
make a move if I didn't know.
He went against the
foundation of who we are.
You don't doubt me do you, Malcolm?
In your final letter from prison,
you said there is no
sacrifice too great for me
to make in your service.
Is this no longer true?
MALCOLM X: Of course not.
I am at your service always.
MUHAMMAD: I'm glad to hear it.
Now, with Reginald gone,
we need to replace him.
Is this, is this something you can do?
(OVERLAPPING CHATTER)
(KNOCK)
KING JR.: Edythe said
you wanted to see me?
Corrie, you know it's
bad luck to see the bride
before the wedding.
Oh.
You look, you look dazzling.
Oh, Corrie, what's wrong?
CORETTA: I can't do this.
I won't say the
vows about "obeying" and
"submitting to your husband."
I'm not gonna do this
with you if I'm going to be
your servant or your
concubine or some sort of
glorified housekeeper.
This needs to be an equal
partnership if it's gonna work.
KING JR.: I agree with you.
CORETTA: What about Daddy King?
KING JR.: Well, it's
not his wedding day.
It's ours.
And no one's gonna tell
us how it should go except
you and me,
if that's all right
with you, Mrs. King.
CORETTA: It's all right with me.
KING JR.: Hmm.
CORETTA: Dr. King.
KING JR.: I ain't see nothing.
God as my witness, I
did not see nothing.
Our love is timeless, ♪
Forever young ♪
Yeah ♪
Our love is timeless ♪
Yeah ♪
Forever young ♪
Yeah. ♪
We were made to last forever ♪
Ever. Ever baby ♪
Forever young ♪
Hey ♪
Forever young ♪
Real love ♪
We were made to last forever ♪
KING SR.: May I have this dance?
Ever, ever, baby ♪
Forever young ♪
CORETTA: Hi, Daddy.
Forever young, forever young ♪
Forever young ♪
♪
(KNOCK)
MR. WILSON: No vacancies
anywhere else in town, hmm?
CORETTA: Not for us.
MR. WILSON: Come on.
- CORETTA: Thank you.
- KING JR.: Thank you.
MR. WILSON: Uh-hmm.
Well, congratulations, y'all.
- KING JR.: Thank you.
- CORETTA: Thank you.
MR. WILSON: Bedrooms are upstairs.
(MAKES OWL SOUNDS)
(LAUGHTER)
CORETTA: Oh, my.
KING JR.: Well?
At least, we'll have a funny
story to tell our kids about
how we spent the wedding night.
CORETTA: Kids?
KING JR.: I told you
I'm a man on a mission.
CORETTA: Oh.
KING JR.: Uh-hmm. What's wrong?
CORETTA: I can't wait
to get out of the South.
Whoa!
(DOOR LOCKS)
KING JR.: Just in case.
MALCOLM X: Can we talk?
WILLIAMS: Yeah. Just getting paid.
Maybe we can go get breakfast.
I know a great flapjack place
around the corner from here.
MALCOLM X: I was
just named minister of
Temple No. 7 in Harlem.
WILLIAMS: Wow. Congratulations.
So what does that mean?
MALCOLM X: Well, with
this opportunity comes the
responsibility to focus
solely on the Nation,
and that means putting my
past behind me along with
everyone associated with it.
WILLIAMS: What are you saying, Red?
Right.
So last night was just
MALCOLM X: A mistake. I'm sorry.
You know me as "Detroit Red."
You always have and always will.
But I've changed, okay?
I'm not Red.
I'm Malcolm.
WILLIAMS: Well, I guess I'd
look pretty stupid right now if
I'd let myself believe
last night was real.
If I had just thought
for one second what a life
with you would look like.
The places we'd go,
the things we'd do.
I guess I'd be pretty stupid
if I let myself get lost in
any of that.
MALCOLM X: Yeah, well,
you're not stupid.
WILLIAMS: I know I'm not.
And you haven't changed.
You are still the same
impulsive person you
have always been.
Only now instead of bad choices,
you are hiding behind somebody
else making them for you.
MALCOLM X: I made
this decision myself.
WILLIAMS: Did you ever
even care about me?
MALCOLM X: Listen, I
meant what I said about
the Nation, okay?
It saved my life.
And it can do the same
for you if you allow it,
and I hope that you do.
♪
Ooh ♪
Ooh ♪
Rock me to sleep ♪
Backward, turn backward, oh, time, ♪
In your flight ♪
Make me a child again
just for tonight ♪
And, Mother, come back
from your echoless shores ♪
And hold me again to
your heart as of yore ♪
And then when we meet,
I shall nevermore weep ♪
For, oh, Mother, once again
you can rock me to sleep ♪
Ooh ♪
Ooh. ♪
Oh, teach me what to say ♪
KING JR.: Good morning.
ALL: Good morning.
KING JR.: I had a, another
sermon I intended to preach
to you today.
One that encompass all that
I have learned in my many,
many years of education and
preaching at my father's hip.
MAN: Yeah. Yes. Yes.
- WOMAN: Well, well.
- MAN: Uh-hmm.
KING JR.: But I feel that
that sermon no longer speaks
to the emotion I now have.
I, instead, would like to use
it as a topic from which to
preach a very common subject.
MAN: Okay.
KING JR.: One wondered by many
a people on many a land across
every continent, in every
country, in every state,
in every city on this God's planet.
- MAN: Oh, yeah.
- WOMAN: All right.
WOMAN: Okay.
KING JR.: A subject that,
despite this being my first
time at your pulpit, I
have no doubt that we share
a unique commonality.
- WOMAN: Right.
- MAN: All right.
WOMAN: Okay.
KING JR.: The subject of who we are.
MAN: All right, yes, yeah.
WOMAN: Right, who we are.
KING JR.: And who we are
is God's glory personified.
ALL: Yes, yes.
KING JR.: When I look out at you,
I see we are mothers and fathers.
MAN: Yeah.
KING JR.: We are sisters and brothers.
- WOMAN: Yes.
- MAN: Yeah.
- MAN: Yes, we are.
- WOMAN: Yes, we are.
KING JR.: Men and women.
But if we let others
tell it, we are slaves.
We are second-class.
We are agitators banging
at the door of segregation,
asking to be let into
the house of equality.
Well, in this moment,
I say we stop asking and
we start demanding.
- MAN: All right.
- ALL: Yeah, yes.
KING JR.: In this moment,
we say equality is not a dirty
word whispered in the
valley of despair but screamed
from the peaks of prosperity.
ALL: Yes, yes.
KING JR.: In this moment, we
soar among the winds of change.
In this moment.
MAN: Yeah, yeah.
KING JR.: We will demand
change no matter what we face
because we have
righteousness on our side.
MAN: All right, all right, all right.
KING JR.: Because we
have love on our side.
And because we have God on our side.
MAN: All right. Hallelujah.
ALL: Yes.
(APPLAUSE)
CORETTA: Yes!
DIRECTOR: Coretta, congratulations.
We've got a lot of work to do
before our first performance,
but you deserve to celebrate.
You earned this.
CORETTA: Thank you, truly.
This is amazing.
I was just wondering,
what is the asterisk for?
DIRECTOR: Some of our
performances will be in
Southern cities, and
because you're a Negro,
for those shows, your
understudy will fill in.
CORETTA: But most of the
shows are in the South.
DIRECTOR: I am sorry.
Until the law is changed,
we have to abide by it.
CORETTA: I got the part.
KING JR.: Oh, Corrie.
That's, that's great.
CORETTA: Thank you, baby.
KING JR.: There's something
I need to tell you.
CORETTA: Uh-hmm.
KING JR.: I got offered
a, a head pastor position.
CORETTA: Oh, where?
KING JR.: At Dexter, in Montgomery.
CORETTA: I thought it
was just a guest sermon.
KING JR.: I thought so too
but it turned out it wasn't.
Corrie, I know this
wasn't part of our plan.
I know this may sound abrupt,
but I think I wanna do this.
Listen, I know how hard
you've worked on your
music career and how far you've come.
I know there'll be other
pastor opportunities for me,
but if things aren't right
for Negroes in the South,
they aren't gonna be right
anywhere in this country.
Corrie,
we both have been
afforded opportunities to go up
North and experience what
America could be for Negroes.
We need to, to pay
that forward and take these
educations we've gotten and
make where we come from better.
And it starts with us, Corrie.
CORETTA: I agree.
We should go to Montgomery.
The shadow of Jim Crow
evil looms over everything.
It's not gonna change itself.
Someone has to change it.
KING JR.: I think I
can be that someone,
but I need you by my
side when I do it.
Something remarkable is
unfolding in the South.
I can feel it.
CORETTA: Then it's best
we be on hand to witness it.
KING JR.: We will do
more than witness it.
We will lead it.
And God will show us the way.
Love, it was fun when it lasted ♪
Love, it's time for
me to go away, yeah ♪
I said, love, did you
think I was serious ♪
About what I said ♪
To you the other day? ♪
Baby, I didn't mean to hurt you ♪
Darling, I'm sorry things
turned out to be so wrong ♪
♪
LITTLE: Blow me over.
You came all this way to
Harlem and didn't tell me?
MALCOLM X: Well, it was unexpected.
Reginald, we need to talk.
LITTLE: What is it?
MALCOLM X: On behalf of
the Honorable Elijah Muhammad,
your duties within the Nation
will no longer be required.
From this point forward, your
title as Head Minister here in
Harlem is in recess and
will be further discussed
within our organization.
It's incumbent upon me to
inform you to remove your
belongings immediately.
LITTLE: Under what grounds?
MALCOLM X: Confirmation of
an inappropriate relationship.
LITTLE: And you believe it?
I didn't do what they're saying
or whatever they're saying.
And I don't need to defend myself,
especially to family.
This, this is all insane.
MALCOLM X: The Honorable
Elijah Muhammad would not
make a mistake.
LITTLE: And you're gonna
believe him over me?
If it wasn't for me, you,
you wouldn't be in the Nation.
(DISTANT THUDS)
(FOOTSTEPS APPROACHING)
Don't, don't, don't, don't do this.
CLYDE X: Brother Reginald,
it's time to go.
LITTLE: Please?
MALCOLM X: I'm sorry, Reginald.
Louder, louder than the noise ♪
Higher, higher than before ♪
Running to the wind ♪
As I pledge the sword ♪
Still you call it love, love ♪
Still you call it love, love ♪
Still you call it love. ♪
Still you call it love, love. ♪
Still you call it love. ♪
Still you call it love. ♪
Still you call it love. ♪