‘Animal Kingdom’ Star Ben Robson Joins Civil War Drama ‘Emperor’

By Justin Kroll

LOS ANGELES (Variety.com) – Ben Robson, best known for playing Craig Cody in TNT’s “Animal Kingdom,” has joined “Emperor,” the Civil War-abolitionist film directed former Lionsgate exec Mark Amin under his Sobini Films banner, sources have confirmed to Variety.

Dayo Okeniyi, James Cromwell, Naturi Naughton, Paul Scheer, Keean Johnson, Mykelti Williamson, Harry Lennix, Kat Graham, and Bruce Dern round out the cast.

Inspired by a true story, the pic follows Shields Green (Okeniyi), who in 1859 escaped from a plantation and made a daring journey north where he met Frederick Douglass (Lennix) and John Brown. With the opportunity to continue to freedom in Canada, Green instead chose to fight to end slavery. The raid at Harpers Ferry is considered one of the sparks that led to the Civil War.

Robson will play the bounty hunter in pursuit of Green.

The film, co-written by Amin and Pat Charles, is currently shooting in Savannah, Ga. Reginald Hudlin is producing for Hudlin Entertainment with Cami Winikoff and Amin for Sobini, while Sobini’s Tyler Boehm will serve as executive producer. UTA is handling domestic sales.

Besides “Animal Kingdom,” Robson also just shot the lead of “A Violent Separation” for the Goetz brothers.

Robson is repped by UTA and Management 360.