Fox Searchlight paid $ 17.5 m — the highest price tag in Sundance history — to acquire Nate Parker's slave uprising drama Birth of a Nation, which, in the high altitude, was prematurely hailed as a can't - miss Oscar contender.
Rock plays Andre Allen, who is basically him under a different name, as he attempts to transition away from comedy with a starring role in a drama about a Haitian slaveuprising.