PHOTOS: Netflix and Native Son Host ‘Rustin’ Screening in New York City

At Vacationer, we’re eagerly awaiting the Netflix movie Rustin to hit theaters on November 3, 2023, and start streaming on November 17. It’s another story finally being told about Bayard Rustin, the architect of the March on Washington in 1963. The gay Civil Rights activist challenged authority, and never apologized for who he was, what he believed, or who he desired. Rustin stood alongside giants like Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., Adam Clayton Powell Jr., and Ella Baker. He dared to imagine a different world and inspired a movement.

Directed by DGA Award and five-time Tony Award winner George C. Wolfe and starring Colman Domingo, Rustin served as the opening night film last week (October 12) for the 35th Annual NewFest held at the SVA Theater in New York. Netflix and Native Son also took the opportunity to host a toast at Hotel Chelsea in Manhattan, New York to celebrate the film, too!

Everyone knows about Netflix, but some people may not be familiar with Native Son. Founded by Emil Wilbekin, the collective of Black gay/queer men is on a mission to ensure that their voices, visibility, and lived experiences are elevated in all communities.

Attendees included the film’s producer Bruce Cohen and production designer Mark Ricker, Tony and Pulitzer Prize Award-winner Michael R. Jackson, Tony Award-winning choreographer George Faison, actors Bradley Gibson and Eric Anderson, and a cross-section of guests from style, music, activism, entertainment fields.

Guests enjoyed custom cocktails tied to themes of the film that inspired them to “Own Your Power.” Wilbekin toasted the group and saluted Rustin’s legacy. 

“Rustin tells the story of our ‘angelic troublemaker’ who designed, built, and organized the march on Washington…what we are doing is carrying Rustin’s legacy forward and I am so grateful that we can see this film together as a community and see a reflection of ourselves as black, gay, queer men and ‘native sons’,” said Wilbekin.

The group celebrated Bayard Rustin and his legacy and posed for portraits to commemorate the special evening, before collectively marching in solidarity over to the SVA theater to honor Bayard’s legacy where they enjoyed opening remarks from director George C. Wolfe.

President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama are two of eight executive producers for the new film. They weren’t present at the opening night event, but we do have photos from the fab occasion. 

Again, Rustin will open in select theaters on November 3, and it will be available to stream on Netflix on November 17.