“If the law differentiates on the basis of sex, then how will women and men ever become equals?” This is the crux of Mimi Leder’s On the Basis of Sex, which stars Felicity Jones (Rogue One, The Theory of Everything) as Ruth Bader Ginsburg, current Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States (and all-around badass). The part of Ginsburg originally belonged to Natalie Portman, but she dropped out in the middle of 2017 after the project stalled for several years. The script, penned by Daniel Stiepleman, made the 2014 Black List, which chronicles the year’s best un-produced scripts.
The biopic tells an inspiring and spirited true story that follows young lawyer Ruth Bader Ginsburg (Jones) in the 1970’s as she joins with her husband Marty (Armie Hammer) to bring a landmark case before the U.S. Court of Appeals and overturn a century of gender discrimination. The case, Weinberger v. Wiesenfeld, involved a widower who was denied his wife’s survivor benefits under Social Security. Ginsberg successfully argued in favor of father’s rights, and the court found that this violated the right to equal protection secured by the Due Process Clause of the Fifth Amendment.
The movie also stars Justin Theroux (who worked with Leder on The Leftovers), Jack Reynor, Cailee Spaeny, Sam Waterston, Stephen Root and Kathy Bates.
Watch the trailer below and judge for yourself if this will be one to keep an eye on come film awards season. On the Basis of Sex premiers in theaters on December 25, 2018, which is in line with Justice Ginsburg’s 25th anniversary on the Supreme Court.
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