Proximity, 99% Invisible, and Warner Bros. present the “Judas and the Black Messiah Podcast,” an official film companion from the Radiotopia podcast network from PRX. This episode contains spoilers. Watch the film and come back here to listen to all the fascinating behind the scenes details. This is the last episode of our companion series. We’ll talk to Che Brooks and Stan McKinney - Black Panthers from the Illinois chapter who knew Chairman Fred. But first - Dominique Fishback. She stars as Debora Johnson, whose name today is Mama Akua Njeri ..read more

Proximity, 99% Invisible, and Warner Bros. present the “Judas and the Black Messiah Podcast,” an official film companion from the Radiotopia podcast network from PRX. This episode contains spoilers. Watch the film and come back here to listen to all the fascinating behind the scenes details. The very first face we see in Judas And The Black Messiah is not Chairman Fred Hampton’s. It’s the character of William O’Neal, played by LaKeith Stanfield. In this episode, we’re taking a closer look at William O’Neal - the career criminal turned FBI informant who betrayed the Black Panthers and Chairman ..read more

Proximity, 99% Invisible, and Warner Bros. present the “Judas and the Black Messiah Podcast,” an official film companion from the Radiotopia podcast network from PRX. This episode contains spoilers. Watch the film and come back here to listen to all the fascinating behind the scenes details. Of all the relationships Chairman Junior built during his time on the film set, the one with Daniel Kaluuya was unique. Daniel stars as Chairman Fred Hampton Senior - the father Chairman Junior never met because he was assassinated three weeks before he was born.  For much of Chairman Junior’s adult l ..read more

Proximity, 99% Invisible, and Warner Bros. present the “Judas and the Black Messiah Podcast,” an official film companion from the Radiotopia podcast network from PRX. This episode contains spoilers. Watch the film and come back here to listen to all the fascinating behind the scenes details. Judas and the Black Messiah producer Ryan Coogler bonded with Chairman Fred Hampton Jr when the filmmakers first approached the Hampton family, asking for their blessing to make the film. It still took 18 months of convincing. The pair talk about the back and forth of presenting the history correctly ..read more

Proximity, 99% Invisible, and Warner Bros. present the “Judas and the Black Messiah Podcast,” an official film companion from the Radiotopia podcast network from PRX. In the “Judas and the Black Messiah Podcast,” host and critic Elvis Mitchell of KCRW is joined by Chairman Fred Hampton Jr. — son of Chairman Fred Hampton and head of the Black Panther Party Cubs — as well as the film’s actors and creative team, and by members of the Black Panther Party who knew Chairman Fred Hampton. Together, they look at the true stories behind the events portrayed in the film. In episode 1, we get the real st ..read more

Chairman Fred Hampton was the leader of the Illinois chapter of the Black Panther Party until his life was cut short on December 4, 1969, when more than a dozen law enforcement officers busted in his West Chicago apartment in a pre-dawn raid. Hampton was shot to death in his bed. He was 21 years old. His life inspired the new film Judas and the Black Messiah, coming out February 12 in theaters and HBO Max. In this official podcast series, produced by 99% Invisible and Proximity Media, in partnership with Warner Bros, we’re looking at the “black messiah” at the center of this film. The REAL sto ..read more