Paramount was already in the business of unloading some of their biggest films, but the pandemic really kicked that into overdrive. This year has basically been a selling-off spree from the studio, and that includes The United States vs. Billie Holiday, the Lee Daniels drama that could be a sneaky Oscars pick this season.
Paramount sold the film to Hulu, who also feel it could be an awards contender as they’ve dated it for release on February 26th. Grammy Award-nominated singer Andra Day plays Holiday, the soulful jazz and swing singer who was targeted by the Federal Bureau of Narcotics for more than two decades, even as she lay dying on her death bed.
Also in the cast is Trevante Rhodes, who plays Jimmy Fletcher, the federal agent who led a sting operation against Holiday even as he was having an affair with her. Garrett Hedlund, Natasha Lyonne, Da’Vine Joy Randolph, Evan Ross, Erik LaRay Harvey, and Dana Gourrier co-star. This marks Daniels’ first film since 2013’s The Butler.
