Apple to Release ‘Banker’ Movie After Accusations Led to Delay
Apple to Release ‘Banker’ Movie After Accusations Led to Delay
(Bloomberg) -- Apple Inc.’s “The Banker” movie, whose debut was scrapped over allegations surrounding one of its producers, will get its premiere after all.
The company said Thursday that it plans to put out the movie in theaters March 6, followed by its appearance on the Apple TV+ streaming platform March 20.
Apple previously delayed a release set for December after “some concerns surrounding the film were brought to our attention.” Cynthia and Sheila Garrett, daughters of the film’s protagonist, accused their half-brother, Bernard Garrett Jr., of sexually assaulting them when they were children, according to a report in November by the Hollywood Reporter.
The picture stars Anthony Mackie as Bernard Garrett Sr., an African-American who built a small financial business using a white man as a front. Garrett Jr. had served as a co-producer on the movie, complicating the project.
Samuel L. Jackson also stars in the movie, one of the first big properties for Apple’s fledgling movie-and-TV efforts.
“We wanted to take the time to understand the situation at hand,” Apple said in a statement on Thursday. “After reviewing the information available to us, including documentation of the filmmakers’ research, we’ve decided to make this important and enlightening film available to viewers.”
The company also said that Garrett Jr. will “not profit from the release of the film in any form, and his credit as a co-producer has been removed.”
To contact the reporter on this story: Mark Gurman in Los Angeles at mgurman1@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Tom Giles at tgiles5@bloomberg.net, Nick Turner, Andrew Pollack
©2020 Bloomberg L.P.