'

Selma

Play trailer

2:25

Selma

PG-13

Released Jan 9, 2015

2h 8m

History

Drama

Play Trailer

Watchlist

Watchlist

Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

99%

Tomatometer

311 Reviews

86%

Popcornmeter

50,000+ Ratings

Although the Civil Rights Act of 1964 legally desegregated the South, discrimination was still rampant in certain areas, making it very difficult for Blacks to register to vote. In 1965, an Alabama city became the battleground in the fight for suffrage. Despite violent opposition, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. (David Oyelowo) and his followers pressed forward on an epic march from Selma to Montgomery, and their efforts culminated with President Lyndon Johnson signing the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

Watch on Fandango at Home

Buy Now

Critics Consensus

Fueled by a gripping performance from David Oyelowo, Selma draws inspiration and dramatic power from the life and death of Martin Luther King, Jr. -- but doesn't ignore how far we remain from the ideals his work embodied.

Read Critics Reviews

Nijla Mu'min

Bitch Media

One of the most effective, well-crafted historical biopics that I've ever seen... giving us a moment in history that feels immediately familiar to the moment we are currently living in.

Jan 22, 2021

Full Review

Chris Stuckmann

ChrisStuckmann.com

Excellent acting, very good directing, a good tight script -- a little bit of pacing issues and... other characters are nowhere near as investing as Martin Luther King is.

Rated: B+

Oct 5, 2018

Full Review

Simon Weaving

Sydney Morning Herald

If you don't mind the technical confusion it's a gripping story, and a great credit to DuVernay and co-writer Paul Webb who were unable to use King's original speeches for copyright reasons.

Rated: 3.5/5

Oct 4, 2018

Full Review

Brendan Cassidy

InSession Film

David Oyelowo gives a star-making performance, and the supporting cast also helps create a multi-dimensional character film.

Jun 17, 2024

Full Review

Savina Petkova

A Good Movie To Watch

With her uncompromising directorial approach, DuVernay crafts a thrilling period film that has all the markers of a well-done genre feature, but uses its mechanisms to tell an emotionally potent story.

Rated: 80/100

Nov 24, 2023

Full Review

Sean Axmaker

Stream on Demand

It’s the kind of film that can get lost in hagiography and simplification. Duvernay sidesteps with a nuanced, complicated portrait of [Dr. Martin Luther] King...

Apr 8, 2023

Full Review

Read all reviews

Helene T

It is a very powerful movie but

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/15/22

Full Review

Stephen C

2 hours and 8 minutes based on a true story!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Rated PG-13 for Brief Strong Language, A Suggestive Moment, Disturbing Thematic Material and Violence.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

05/27/25

Full Review

Jason A

Mr. Meeks can't help but show us the goated ones fr fr

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

05/08/25

Full Review

Audience Member

Martin Luther Jr message is love.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

04/30/25

Full Review

Blu B

All Time Classic. You can't be human and not feel something for King & the inexcusable brutality shown throught the runtime. It's brutal and difficult to watch. It does a great job making you feel like your really in 1965 watching this unfold. It's not done like found footage, but it also isn't a dry doucmentary style either. It does help going into this knowing something first about the Civil Rights movement as well. This doesn't really explain the background that lead up to this that well. But it does a great job just making you get so horrified at the brutality, angry and fustrated at the buracratic wall in their way, and being inspired by MLK. This doen't put him on a pedestal and make him invincible which I really appreciated. It showed a man who understood the cause was bigger than him and you understand why he was able to draw so many people and change the course of history. David Oyelowo steals the show as King. Everyone else is really good but doesn't get the same level of development or focus and rightfully so. Music is really good too but it isn't memorable or catchy on it's own though. Everyhting else is excellent though with really good direction. This does a first rate job weaving the cause with MLK and never feeling like one is hammed in over the other. It perfectly balances the two and shows how they were one. Even if you don't know anything about the Civil Rights Era, this is still worth a watch for anyone.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/21/25

Full Review

Will G

This film was about Martin Luther King Jr’s marches for the civil rights movement. Oprah Winfrey and Tim Roth did a great job in this movie. I’ve been to most of the states they went to in the film. It was nice to hear the preaching too.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/16/25

Full Review

Read all reviews

Read More

Read Less

POST RATING

WRITE A REVIEW

EDIT REVIEW

Ava DuVernay

Director

David Oyelowo

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Tom Wilkinson

President Lyndon Baines Johnson

Carmen Ejogo

Coretta Scott King

Giovanni Ribisi

Lee White

Alessandro Nivola

John Doar

View more videos

The Best of Enemies

51%

77%

The Best of Enemies

Watchlist

TRAILER

for The Best of Enemies

Son of God

17%

73%

Son of God

Watchlist

TRAILER

for Son of God

Lee Daniels' The Butler

71%

78%

Lee Daniels' The Butler

Watchlist

Copperhead

21%

45%

Copperhead

Watchlist

Walking With the Enemy

46%

58%

Walking With the Enemy

Watchlist

Discover more movies and TV shows.

View More

The 21 Most Memorable Movie Moments of the Past 21 Years: Vote for the Best Now!

21 Most Memorable Movie Moments: Crossing the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma (2014)

Melanie Lynskey’s Five Favorite Films

Selma: Trailer 1

2:25

The March Across Edmund Pettus Bridge from ‘Selma’ | Rotten Tomatoes’ 21 Most Memorable Moments

3:06

View more videos

View more photos

Synopsis

Although the Civil Rights Act of 1964 legally desegregated the South, discrimination was still rampant in certain areas, making it very difficult for Blacks to register to vote. In 1965, an Alabama city became the battleground in the fight for suffrage. Despite violent opposition, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. (David Oyelowo) and his followers pressed forward on an epic march from Selma to Montgomery, and their efforts culminated with President Lyndon Johnson signing the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

Director: Ava DuVernay
Producer: Christian Colson, Oprah Winfrey, Dede Gardner, Jeremy Kleiner
Screenwriter: Paul Webb
Distributor: Paramount Pictures
Production Co: Plan B Entertainment, Cloud Eight, Harpo Films
Rating: PG-13 (Brief Strong Language|A Suggestive Moment|Disturbing Thematic Material|Violence)
Genre: History, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Jan 9, 2015, Wide
Rerelease Date (Theaters): Mar 20, 2015
Release Date (Streaming): May 24, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA): $52.1M
Runtime: 2h 8m

Most Popular at Home Now