‘Emancipation’ producer apologizes for ‘Whipped Peter’ photo at premiere

one of my producers will SmithA new movie about a runaway slave apologizes for bringing a portrait of the character’s true inspiration to its premiere.

Joey McFarland He released an official report on Sunday — this after there was some apparent outrage over the fact that he brought a wallet-sized photo to the “Emancipation” premiere in LA on Wednesday… that flashed to a reporter on the red carpet as they discussed it.

McFarland was asked how he got the original picture of “Whipped Peter” from 1863…and then actually took it out and showed it. His answer was to see the importance of history and want to curate valuable artifacts like these so they can live on and preserve them – so we can all learn a valuable lesson from the past.

On the surface, there doesn’t seem to be anything wrong with the JMF statement. But, of course, some took issue with his phrasing — like saying he wanted there to be “a piece of Peter” that night — and the optics of a white man owning this image and posing it like a prop.

That’s how a few people interpreted his encounter here anyway… and apparently McFarland caught it that noise And I felt compelled to explain himself.

He writes, “I apologize from the bottom of my heart to all those I have offended by bringing a picture of Peter into editing the first show. My purpose was to honor this remarkable man and remind the general public that not only did his image lead to change in 1863, but it still receives and promotes change today.”

McFarland adds, “Having unearthed Peter’s origin story with the help of diligent historians, I’ve spent the last few years working with editing creative time to bring his story to life so that audiences around the world have a chance to appreciate his heroism. His actions don’t distract from the film’s message.” He says he simply wanted to honor the legacy of Peter and others like him, and meant no harm in showing off the photo.