'42' Trailer Hits a Home Run...

As a lifelong baseball fan, I'm stunned it's taken so long for a Jackie Robinson biopic to emerge.  Robinson broke the color barrier in professional baseball as a member of the Brooklyn Dodgers by becoming the first African American ballplayer in 1947.  Many years later, Robinson's number 42 now adorns the outfield walls of every MLB stadium.  The upcoming movie titled 42 will tell the dramatic life story of the late baseball legend.

We have the first trailer for 42 from writer/director Brian Helgeland (A Knight's Tale, Payback).  Robinson will be portrayed by by Chadwick Boseman who's mostly starred on TV, though did also play an athlete (Floyd Little) in the football movie The Express. 

To bring in a little more recognizable star power, Harrison Ford plays famed baseball executive Branch Rickey.  Rickey was well known as the man who signed Jackie Robinson, while also drafting the first Hispanic major leaguer, Roberto Clemente. 

42 is a story of one man against the world (segregation, racism) and how he came out on top through hard work and perseverance.  It should prove to be the kind of motivational movie people clamor to see, while introducing many non-baseball fans to an American legend. 

42 will arrive in theaters on April 12, 2013, so be on the look out for it.