The outstanding King Richard proves biopics can work.
Could Will Smith finally win an Oscar for playing the father behind two tennis legends?
The Short Take:
With a focused story that both indicts tennis’ elitism and uplifts viewers, King Richard proves that biopics and sports movies don’t have to be sappy clichés. Give Will Smith his long-awaited Oscar already.
The Long Take:
When I heard that Will Smith would play Richard Williams, the father of tennis superstars Venus and Serena Williams, I didn’t pay much attention. Movies chronicling the lives of famous people usually disappoint because they inevitably caricature, over-romanticize, or try to cover too much ground. Reinaldo Marcus Green’s King Richard, surprisingly, falls into none of these traps.
Green and screenwriter Zach Baylin made two really smart choices when they approached this film: they zoomed in on a very specific period in Venus and Serena’s careers as opposed to trying to tell a comprehensive cradle to grave story. We see their early training on neighborhood courts and most of the film shows them trying to convince coaches to take them on or competing at the amateur level.
Green and Baylin also, as the title indicates, focus primarily on Richard Williams instead of Venus or Serena. This cleverly sidesteps a big sports movie cliché because the very predictable will they win, will they lose, and will they bounce back when the chips are down becomes a backdrop rather than the main story, making room for an authentic exploration of a family as they try to, as Richard Williams says in the film, “shake up this world.” The story is less about how good at tennis the sisters are at any given moment and more about their family dynamic and their entry into tennis as a social and economic institution.
Some folks over at The Next Best Picture podcast say that their main gripe with the film is that the film privileges Richard Williams’ patriarchal perspective and in the process sidelines Venus and Serena. I can see why someone would say that, but then I remind myself that Venus, Serena, and their half-sister Isha Price are all executive producers, and frequently consulted on the film’s production. This is the story that they chose to tell, and that makes me mind their supporting character status less. In fact, I can really relate to daughters reflecting on how their larger than life personality father helped them get to where they are today.
Full disclosure: my own father wanted me to be a tennis prodigy. He loves tennis and is quite good at it. But when he tried to train my brother and I when we were kids, it didn’t take. We were indoor kids who wanted to spend time with books, art, and video games. The way that Will Smith bellows and hoots encouragement at his daughters as they hustle across the court reminds me so much of tennis time with my dad. He’d shout “Youuuu got it,” across the court when I actually managed to hit the ball. He also pushed me to study music; if I’d wanted to, he probably would have supported my going to a conservatory because he, like Richard Williams, understood that a surefire way to achieve the American Dream is to help open more doors for your kids so their life will be more comfortable and easier than your own.
My dad loves watching YouTube videos of concert pianist child prodigies, and, of course, we’ve watched a lot of Venus and Serena’s matches. Part of the appeal, I think, is that when someone has that much raw talent, the world has to pay attention to them, no matter who they are or what they look like. I can understand why that kind of command can be intoxicating. My dad is also a believer that as long as you work hard, you can achieve anything. Richard Williams seems to subscribe to this mentality as well. I wouldn’t be where I am today without my dad’s sacrifices, stubbornness, and constant nagging that all I needed to do was work hard and study hard. If I were an executive producer on a film about my childhood, I’d probably make it about him too.
The version of Richard Williams we meet in the film is a fierce parent who works his kids hard but will sacrifice his own sleep, pride, and physical safety to protect them and their potential. He is uncompromising in his vision (or “The Plan,” as he calls it), much to the chagrin of others, but the film interestingly presents this as both a strength and a flaw. He’s a complicated figure in that his ego sometimes clouds his judgment. He both knows his teaching alone can’t take Venus and Serena to the next level, but when someone more qualified comes along, he is simply unwilling to let go and stand to the side. Sometimes this hurts and sometimes this helps, and ultimately that dichotomy creates nuance that I don’t usually see in biopics. Bill Simmons, who was a guest on The Big Picture’s episode focusing on King Richard, said that he felt like the film was more of a parenting movie than a sports movie, and I not only agree but thinks this is what makes everything work. Through the Richard Williams character, the film raises questions about what it means to be a good parent and what nurturing a child’s talents and investing in their future could or should look like. Parents who chauffeur their children from activity to activity and constantly worry about their growth and development — and how tough to be on them — will surely connect with the film.
Richard isn’t just a tennis dad; he’s a Black man who grew up in the segregated South and raised his children in Compton, CA or “the Ghetto,” as he frequently calls it. He, with the help of his wife and five daughters, defies systemic racism, violence, financial hardship, and misguided doubts from the world around him. The film never shies away from the harsh realities of inequity, but, at the same time, contains so much joy and confidence. This, I suspect, is what will make it both a “crowd pleaser” (the most common phrase I hear used across reviews for this film) and an Oscar contender. Indiewire critic Anne Thompson has said on multiple occasions that she feels the film is “grounded” in reality in a way that elevates the film above its peers. While the story hits the emotional notes you’d expect, the screenplay and direction provide a lot of shading that creates the “grounded” feeling to which Thompson refers.
The film is never heavy-handed with its social commentary, but it’s very clear —both visually and through bits of dialogue— that tennis is a sport designed for and by rich white families who have access to country clubs and “infinite resources.” I felt the privilege and inaccessibility to those who are not already members of the elite oozing in every frame, and while there are comments and conversations about racialized assumptions people make about the Williams family and the amount of trail-blazing they face, there’s never any on-the-nose monologue explaining it all.
As I mentioned earlier, tennis was on the TV a lot at my house growing up. In fact, aside from figure skating during the Winter Olympics, tennis was the only sport that was ever on our TV. And not just the Williams sisters. I recognized virtually all the known tennis players mentioned in this film. So, when King Richard gives us a sports action scene, it brings me right back to those spectating memories. Watching with bated breath to see how and when a player might return a ball out of the other player’s reach. In awe when a perfect serve just shuts the other player out entirely. My dad always says that power and speed are incredibly important for a tennis player, but he then goes on to say that the strategy and ability to outsmart an opponent is what separates good from great players. When characters are actually playing tennis in King Richard, the blocking and editing deliver on both these elements. I especially liked the cutting back and forth between various angles on the court and screens televising the same match. I’d add a shoutout to the sound editing as well. The echo-y bop of a tennis ball hitting the court is such a specific sound, and hearing it always added to the tension and drama.
Image Credit: USA Today
The linchpin here, though, is Will Smith. While I’m always happy to see Will Smith in a movie, I don’t necessarily expect much depth from his performances. And in action films, I don’t mind that at all because we get high-wattage charisma and comedic timing. In his portrayal of Richard Williams, we get it all: magnetism, humor, good cheer, eccentricity, humility, pain, rage, vulnerability, tenderness, arrogance, and grit. He’s fully committed to a voice, a posture, and a walk, but at no point did I feel like he was doing an impersonation of someone else. This is an extremely challenging role, not only because it’s biographical, but because a lot of the film involves Richard Williams silently watching his daughters play tennis or moving through scenes alone, with no dialogue. (This is not to say that he doesn’t also talk a lot. That’s kind of a feature of the character.) This is the right role, with the right supporting cast to bolster his outstanding performance. I will be very surprised if he does not win the Best Actor Oscar this year. (My one caveat being that I will be much more confident after I’ve seen Benedict Cumberbatch in Netflix’s The Power of the Dog. He seems to be the only other contender at this point.)
Just because Will Smith has all the Oscar buzz does not mean that the rest of the cast are not deserving. Anjanue Ellis is a powerhouse as Richard’s wife, Oracene Price. She doesn’t get a lot to do for most of the film, but there’s one scene where she does and she GOES for it. I love that the film gives Oracene the chance to confront her husband and call him out. Similarly, newcomer Saniyya Sidney holds her own in big, meaty scenes with Will Smith. She really sold the purity of Venus Williams’ self-confidence, which in another actor’s hands could have been saccharine or childish. And Jon Bernthal completely took me by surprise by how entertaining he was as Rick Macci. I both felt unsettled by and enamored with his character’s manic energy and thought he brought a surprising amount of sweetness that rounded out the role.
Image Credit: Polygon
I’ll admit that I connected with King Richard emotionally in a way that others might not. My personal connection to the subject matter may allow me to internalize the inspirational narrative as genuine and fresh. (And as such invite others to offer alternative interpretations.) But it’s Thanksgiving week and you need a feel good movie to watch with your family, right? And it’s is available on HBOMax. King Richard may be the best, easiest new movie to watch right now.