Michael B. Jordan Fights for Innocent Man’s Life in ‘Just Mercy’ Trailer

Young lawyer Bryan Stevenson (Michael B. Jordan) takes his Harvard Law degree to Alabama to fight for those who were condemned for crimes they didn’t commit in the latest trailer for Warner Bros.’ Just Mercy.

Based on a true story, the legal drama follows Bryan’s defense of Walter McMillian (Jamie Foxx) after he’s sentenced to “death by electrocution” for killing an 18-year-old woman despite evidence that proves he’s innocent.

Brie Larson, O’Shea Jackson Jr., Rob Morgan and Tim Blake Nelson round out the cast in the Destin Daniel Cretton-written and -directed film.

The trailer opens with a shot of Bryan and Walter sitting in a courtroom as a judge sentences the latter to death. Walter’s son John (C.J. LeBlanc) stands up and pleads with the judge, “That’s my dad, sir,” he says. “He ain’t do nothing wrong.” When the judge orders John to sit down, he refuses, saying he won’t if they’re going to kill his dad for no reason, resulting in a screaming match with the judge and court officers subduing John. 

“They convicted an innocent man,” Bryan says later in the trailer. “I was taught to fight for the people who need the help the most.”

In another scene, Bryan sits in a room full of people and asks who was with Walter the morning the woman was killed, and the majority of the people raise their hands.

“Your life is still meaningful, and I’m gonna do everything possible to keep them from taking it,” Bryan tells Walter.

Just Mercy is set to be released Dec. 25 in select theaters and go wide on Jan. 10.

Watch the full trailer above.