christian movie review king richard

King Richard

Reviewed by: Alexander Malsan CONTRIBUTOR

People who seek fame and fortune —“We’ll have two kids, and we’ll become rich. They’re going to be tennis players.”

Lust for money and fame

A man who decided his future daughters would be tennis professionals and then wrote up an 78-page plan, and started giving lessons to Venus and Serena when they were 4½ years old

Becoming very famous and influential multi-millionaires

Sisters Venus Williams and Serena Williams

Pros and cons of athletes being coached by their father

The world of tennis competition

A father who divorced 3 wives

What does the Bible say about pride versus humility ?

“G rowing up, nobody had respect for Richard Williams, but they’re going to respect you two, Venus and Serena,” says Richard Williams ( Will Smith ) of Compton, California. In fact, before they were even born he wrote a 78-page plan for their entire future and makes sure that it goes according to plan. At the same time, he swore he’d be a better father than his father and promised to always protect all of his daughters.

Richard and his Wife, ‘Brandy,’ were former tennis athletes before they settled. As such, Richard (and sometimes Brandy) has been training Venus and Serena from the ages of 4 and 5 to become world-class tennis players. This sometimes involves late nights, drills, and a lot of practices. The girls love it though, and they love their father Richard.

Richard believes that they have what it takes to go all the way… but will the world give these girls that same chance?

Biographical films often show only ONE perspective. When this happens, I often hear the voice of an old college professor from a library skills class saying to me, “Never just believe the first thing you see or read. Always verify your information.” So for this particular review, I’d like to do that. So here are some facts about the real Richard Williams, in case you’re wondering.

Fact #1: He accidentally discovered how profitable tennis could be as a profession and decided to not only learn the game, but also teach it to the unborn daughters he believed would one day be at “the forefront of a white-dominated game.”

Fact #2: Richard has been married three times. In the film you only hear about one previous marriage and some of his other kids.

Fact #3: After marrying and divorcing Oracene ‘Brandy’ Price he began a relationship Lakeisha Juanita Graham who was only a year older than Venus. They eventually married.

The film presents Richard as a man who came from hard beginnings, remained humble but strived for excellence from his daughters. As Richard himself says to a character in the film, “Are we hard on the kids? Yeah, we’re hard on the kids. That’s our job! To keep them off the streets.”

Indeed, Richard Williams was (and still is) a man who always questioned his parental choices when it came to Venus and Serena’s upbringing, particularly in how hard he pushed them and at such a young age. As we witness in the film, he did indeed sometimes have them practice in the most unfavorable conditions. According to Rick Macci, the girls’ former coach:

“…His (Richard’s) techniques also included throwing a beer bottle to the back of the court to stop the girls from going too far back during matches. “The one thing I knew Venus and Serena had is they’d run over broken glass to get a ball. There were a few times Richard put broken glass on the court,” Macci said. “The glass was behind the baseline, back by the fence, so they wouldn’t back up and take the ball early.”

However, to his credit, Richard Williams (and this is coming from a variety of sources I researched) wasn’t like other tennis player parents. He didn’t have Venus and Serena focus their entire life on tennis; they also had to seriously focus on their studies. He wanted to ensure they had a strong education.

“King Richard,” executively produced by Will Smith and wife Jada Pinkett Smith, along with Serena and Venus Williams, doesn’t paint Richard in a perfect light. Yet, I can’t help but wonder, upon reflection, if we are only seeing ONE side of the story. Had there been a more neutral party involved in the writing process, this would probably have been a more accurate biographical film, as opposed to a one-sided one.

Cinematically, the film is an marvel. Will Smith must have studied Richard, and it shows. Every subtle nuance, from the way Richard talks, his mannerisms, his humor, to his stance is intact and carefully crafted. However, up and coming actress Saniyya Sidney’s performance should not be understated.

My main complaint is the pacing. It’s a tad slow toward the end of the second act, but then picks up again toward Act 3 and—for those who don’t know much about Venus’ early career—toward a riveting conclusion.

Content for Concern

VIOLENCE: A character is kicked in the stomach by some gang members for defending his daughter (his daughters witness this). A character beats a man with a tennis racket, but then gang members later come up and begin beating the character into unconsciousness. Someone is killed in a drive-by shooting. We witness someone crossing the street and coming very close to shooting someone. We hear someone say that parents that fail to prevent their kids from ending up on the streets where they have their heads blown off should be arrested. Police are seen beating up a suspect on TV. Venus angrily tries to hit tennis balls at her dad. We hear a story about how a white man was beating up a black man.

VULGARITY: F-word (1), and f-word euphemisms (Frickin’ and Freakin’), Scr*w (3), Bull-sh*t (1), N*gga (5), Cr*cker (1), Sh*t (2), Cr*p (1), Fag (1), A** (6), B*tch (1), P*ssed off (1), and “You can kiss my backside”

PROFANITY; G*d (1), G*d- d*mn (1), D*mn-it (1), H*ll (4)

SEX: We hear that a woman across the street from where Richard lives has a daughter who is a prostitute. We hear about how Richard has fathered other children. We hear guys cat-calling and hitting on one of Richard’s daughters.

NUDITY: Characters are seen wearing rather short shorts, including short bathing suit bottoms. In one locker room scene we see a girl in a towel and a girl changing out of a shirt.

DRUGS: A character talks about smoking a blunt. The song “You Got to Know When to Hold Them” talks about smoking cigarettes. We hear about a tennis player being arrested for possession of crack-cocaine, marijuaina, and heroin.

OTHER: A parent scolds a young child for how horrible she played at a championship tennis game (she seems no older than 8). Richard attempts to drive off without the girls in one scene to teach them a lesson about bragging. There are occasional conversations regarding racial discrimination . We also hear how “amazing” it is that Venus made it to junior pros—given her “upbringing.” Again, Richard pushes and parents Venus and Serena too hard sometimes. We also see some of Richard’s anger displayed from time to time.

The focus of the film is on parenting and on the important role a parent has in their child’s life. It is so critical that parents be there for their children, and that their children know just how much they are loved by their parents. Parenting is one of the most essential and difficult roles anyone can take. There is no instruction book. However, God provides some essentials for Christian parents on raising their off-spring.

“Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it.” — Proverbs 22:6

“Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior are the children of one’s youth. Blessed is the man who fills his quiver with them! He shall not be put to shame when he speaks with his enemies in the gate.” — Psalm 127:3-5

What are we to teach the children?

“Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.” — Ephesians 5:1-2

Closing Thoughts and Recommendation

Like the man it’s based on, “King Richard” isn’t perfect. There’s violence, some vulgarity, and other content issues on display. Regardless of how you may feel about the title character himself, the FILM “King Richard” carries messages that are far stronger than in most films these days: family, trust and perseverance in spite of insurmountable odds. In short, the positives may outweigh the negatives.

I wouldn’t take young children to see this film due to the language and violence. Also, keep in mind that biographical films often only tell the truth to a certain degree and such is certainly the case with “King Richard.”

• Vulgar/Crude language: Heavy
• Profane language: Moderate
• Violence: Moderate
• Sex: Moderate
• Nudity: Mild
• Drugs/Alcohol: Mild
• Occult: None

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• DVD & Streaming

King Richard

Content caution.

In Theaters

• November 19, 2021
• Will Smith as Richard Williams; Aunjanue Ellis as Oracene; Jon Bernthal as Rick Macci; Saniyya Sidney as Venus Williams; Demi Singleton as Serena Williams; Tony Goldwyn as Paul Cohen; Mikayla Lashae Bartholomew as Tunde Price; Daniele Lawson as Isha Price; Layla Crawford as Lyndrea Price; Erika Ringor as Ms. Strickland

Home Release Date

• Reinaldo Marcus Green

Distributor

• Warner Bros., HBO Max

Movie Review

You can do anything you want.

Yeah, sure.

Oh, you can do almost anything you want, given enough skill and time. If you want to be a doctor or a lawyer, and if you work really, really, really hard, you can probably do that.

But a professional tennis player? That’s something else.

According to Schmoop.com, about 5 million kids around the world dream of becoming professional tennis players when they’re 7. By the time those kids turn 15, you’re probably looking at 100,000 who still have that dream. By that time, most all of them have plenty of talent. Most work really, really hard.

The number who successfully turn pro? Maybe 10 of those 100,000, according to Schmoop. And of those lucky few—there are fewer than 4,000 tennis pros in the world—only 256 compete in singles matches at Wimbledon every year. 

Richard Williams aims to buck those odds.

He has no interest in turning pro himself, of course. He’s too old, his feet hurt too much. But his daughters? He feels like they’ve got a shot. Before they were even born, Richard put together a 78-page plan for their future careers. And now that they’re both drawing breath and swinging rackets, Richard thinks they’re both right on track.

But to be great tennis player, you need more than talent, more than a tireless work ethic. You need money . Money for coaches, for tournaments, for tennis camps, for training. And that’s something Richard just doesn’t have. He trains his girls himself on municiple courts in delapidated parks surrounded by gang members. He shleps them around Compton—a gritty neighborhood in Los Angeles—in a beat-up van.

So Richard pursues his—er, his girls’ —dreams with an unorthodox flourish. He sends videos to the best coaches in the country, meeting in person with as many as he can. “We not here to rob you,” he tells one. We here to make you rich!” But they’ll have to coach the girls for free—and that, given the odds, is a bet most would never entertain. Most ignore him or turn him down flat. “Have you thought about basketball?” one asks, with just a shade of racist intent.

No he hasn’t. Of course he hasn’t. Because Venus and Serena Williams are destined for tennis greatness. Even if they, and he, are the only ones who know it.

Positive Elements

Richard admits he’s not a perfect father. And in King Richard , he does plenty that might make viewers cringe. But a lot of what drives tennis coaches, parents and even his own kids a little crazy comes from a good place: He wants to raise his children right.

Richard and his wife, Brandy, have five daughters, not just two. They all sleep in the same bedroom and live in a rough neighborhood. Richard’s determined to keep them off those dangerous, corrupting streets. Tennis is just one part of the plan.

The rest? Even though his own education wasn’t the best, Richard demands academic excellence from his daughters (and indeed, most or all of them seem to get straight A’s). Venus and Serena apparently know how to speak four languages before they learn how to drive. For fun, the Williams family holds talent shows, which is practically the equivalent of pulling taffy or singing ’round the ol’ piano. This family practically defines the term “close-knit,” and does it under very trying circumstances.

When he sees how corrosive the competitive junior tennis circuit can be—and how belittling and even nasty other tennis parents can get—Richard makes the unheard-of decision of taking Venus off the circuit (despite the girl having a 63-0 record), telling her coach that the next time she plays, it’ll be as a pro.

He is as protective a dad as a dad can be, even to the point of confronting a handful of gang members when one directs lewd comments at his oldest daughter (Tunde). And when Venus begins to push back at his protectiveness—which, in truth, has turned the corner to being overbearing—he explains why he can be so controlling. Using a family story as illustration, he recounts a time when Richard saw his own father skedaddle when Richard was in trouble. “I never wanted you to look up and see your daddy running away,” he tells her. Good intentions aside, though, Richard can still be exasperating.

In many respects, Brandy is the cement that holds the Williams family together—and filling in the gaps that Richard leaves in his wake. When Richard is concentrating on Venus’s future, Brandy takes Serena to the court and helps fix her serve. When Richard’s determined to teach his kids a lesson in humility—planning to drive off while the kids get ice cream miles away from home—Brandy leavens the lesson with a little common sense (and insists that Richard, y’know, not desert their children). She’s just as loving and just as demanding as Richard is, and she feels bound by her faith to follow her husband’s lead. But she reminds him never assume her silence means she agrees with him—and Brandy helps keep Richard’s sometimes raging ego in check.

The parents’ hard work shows up in their kids. The movie versions of Venus and Serena are unfailingly polite (if unwaveringly confident in their own abilities). They obey their parents and appreciate them both deeply. And when Richard does start letting Venus make some of her own decisions, Venus winds up making some pretty good ones—showing that her upbringing helped her become more than just a good player: She’s a pretty savvy person, too.

Another element that we shouldn’t just let slide by: As Venus and Serena grow into the fledgling tennis stars Richard knew that they could be, everyone’s very aware of the girls’ significance. In this particular arena, filled with country-club families and overwhelmingly white, Venus and Serena stand out—not just because of their game, but because of their color and upbringing. “This next step you ’bout to take, you not going just be representing you,” Richard tells Venus as she considers turning pro. “You’re going be representing every little Black girl on earth.” Venus and Serena are going to be critically important role models, in other words—a role they should, and do, take seriously.

Spiritual Elements

The real Williams sisters were raised to be Jehovah’s Witnesses, and we hear one clear reference to that strain of faith when Richard mentions a “Kingdom Hall.” Outside that sole mention, you might assume that the Williams family was simply Christian. They pray at the dinner table, and we hear references to having “faith.”

Sexual Content

The woman who lives across the street doesn’t approve of how Richard and Brandy Williams are raising their kids (and is pretty appalled that Richard makes Venus and Serena practice in the rain). But Richard knows that the neighbor’s own daughter is working as a prostitute, and he’s determined to keep his girls from falling into that fate.

We hear during an argument that Richard has fathered other children—a reminder that’s painful to Brandy and perhaps a surprise to the kids listening in. We hear the kids joke about “booty.”

While Richard is on the tennis court with Venus and Serena one afternoon, older sister Tunde is at a park table doing homework. Several young men—likely members of a gang—direct a number of suggestive comments and lewd remarks in Tunde’s direction. Richard sees what’s going on and he knows it’s not the first time they’ve harassed Tunde. So …

Violent Content

Richard walks over and tells them to cut it out. They punch Richard in the gut and walk away, as Richard struggles for breath—and as his girls look on. When they get back home, one of the girls shouts to Brandy, “Daddy got beat up again!”

It’s not the last time Richard deals with these bullies. They discover him alone on the tennis court and start peppering him and his family with insults—including some crude suggestions about what one wants to do with the oldest daughter. Richard punches the guy and is, in turn, brutally beaten—trying to ward off the punches and kicks by laying in a fetal position. The leader points a gun at Richard’s head and pulls back the hammer as his pals encourage him to “smoke” the father. He does not, but he does hit Richard in the head with a racket, knocking him out cold.

When he comes to, Richard’s had enough. He goes back out with a gun of his own, planning to kill his assailant. But just as he’s getting out of his car to do the deed, the gang member is gunned down in a drive-by shooting. (We see the car thunder by, hear the shots and see the body fall in the street.)

Richard tells his kids about his rough upbringing. “When I was your age, I had to fight every day,” he said. “I ain’t had no daddy to stand [up for me].” He says that he’d never gotten much respect in the world, but he’s determined to make sure that his daughters are respected.

We hear how Richard can say some pretty provocative things in interviews, including how tennis parents should be killed. Tennis players slam rackets into the net or on the ground. There are references to police brutality, and we see some clips of the Rodney King beating.

Crude or Profane Language

The f-word is used once (along with the stand-in “freaking”) and the s-word twice. We also hear “a–,” “b–ch,” “d–n,” “f-g” and “h—,” as well as two misuses of God’s name (once with “d–n”). The n-word is used about five times.

Drug and Alcohol Content

We see a bit of wine and champagne at country clubs, as well as hints of the drug deals that may be happening in the Williams’ Compton neighborhood.

One of Venus and Serena’s coaches points to Jennifer Capriati—a teen tennis prodigy—as an example of what the girls should strive for. Later, news reports blare that Capriati was busted for marijuana possession, and the reports allude to some heroin being present at the scene, too. Those reports—and how Capriati burned out on tennis at a young age—encourage Richard to disregard his daughters’ coaches and steer their development in a different way.

Other Negative Elements

Race and racism form an important undercurrent to this story; and Richard’s interactions with the predominantly white tennis culture shows, at times, how prickly and how difficult-to-navigate such issues can be. Sometimes, Richard smiles in the face of racist slights. Other times, he takes offense when no offense was meant. (When he meets with a couple of sponsor reps at a country club, for instance, he thanks them for making the members take off their hoods—a reference, of course, to the Ku Klux Klan.)

And let’s be honest: Richard can be kind of a jerk, even if his instincts often prove to be right on.

Most of us know just how right Richard Williams was about his daughters’ tennis prospects.

Venus was the first Black woman to be ranked No. 1 by the Women’s Tennis Association and won seven Grand Slam singles tournaments—including five Wimbledon championships. Serena has won 23 Grand Slam singles titles—the second most of all time—and she’s considered by many to be the greatest tennis player, male or female, in history. Together, the Williams sisters have won 14 doubles Grand Slam championships as well.

The sisters were behind the production of King Richard , too—perhaps looking to add a little movie hardware to their trophy case.

“There are so many ways to tell this story,” Serena told Entertainment Weekly . “But I think telling it through my dad was the best way because he had the idea. He knew how to do it.”

Richard himself wasn’t involved in the production, but the movie feels like a warts-and-all love letter to the way the girls were raised. Richard’s not perfect, but he loves his kids. Richard’s a hard father, but he’s hard because he wants his girls to achieve something special—to aspire to a life beyond the streets of Compton.

I think many a parent who reads these reviews can see something of themselves in Richard—something of their own family in the Williams family. We want what’s best for our kids. We’re aware that the world, and the culture, we’re raising them in doesn’t do us many favors. We’re concerned enough to read reviews just like this one, to see if this movie about a not-so-typical family is right for our families.

King Richard deserves its PG-13 rating based on language alone. Sensuality and violence form small-but-important parts of the movie, too. But rarely, I think, does a film so effectively convey how hard it can be to raise children (tennis stars or not) and the sort of dedication it can take to raise them well. King Richard is an aspirational film—and one that might encourage parents to remember that all of their efforts aren’t wasted.

Our kids may not turn into great tennis players, of course. But with work and determination, and while making a lot of mistakes along the way, we have a chance at raising our kids to be good people.

And that, honestly, is more important than any cup from Wimbledon.

Paul Asay has been part of the Plugged In staff since 2007, watching and reviewing roughly 15 quintillion movies and television shows. He’s written for a number of other publications, too, including Time, The Washington Post and Christianity Today. The author of several books, Paul loves to find spirituality in unexpected places, including popular entertainment, and he loves all things superhero. His vices include James Bond films, Mountain Dew and terrible B-grade movies. He’s married, has two children and a neurotic dog, runs marathons on occasion and hopes to someday own his own tuxedo. Feel free to follow him on Twitter @AsayPaul.

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“King Richard” is half sports movie, half biopic. As such, it hits the sweet spots and sour notes of both genres. Depending on your perspective, this is either an invitation or a warning. Fans of the preternaturally talented tennis superstars Venus and Serena Williams will flock to this origin story when it makes its simultaneous debut in theaters and on HBO Max. But the film’s title, and the Williams’ executive producer credits, should clue you in on exactly how complicated the characterization of its subject will be, and just how far the needle will be sent up the likability gauge. It seems that only directors Bob Fosse and Richard Pryor were willing to risk making their semi-autobiographical, cinematic alter egos potentially irredeemable at the expense of viewers’ comfort. Richard Williams does some infuriating things here, but the movie never once indicates he was ever wrong. This sands the edges off a film that occasionally comes at you from unexpectedly askew angles.

When Mario van Peebles decided to play his father, Melvin, in “Baadasssss,” the elder van Peebles told him “don’t make me too nice.” Will Smith adheres to this philosophy, though “King Richard” keeps pulling him back from the brink. The day before my screening, I saw Smith live on his book tour at the Kings Theater in Brooklyn. He read from his book, performed songs and chatted with Spike Lee . Smith talked about how he uses humor as a defense mechanism, an action to hide his fears. His words came back to me as I watched his performance; Richard Williams is always on, tossing off asides and comments that are often hilarious and mean enough for a Madea movie. He is larger than life, and we need a larger-than-life personality to play him, someone who can successfully overpower your defenses with charm.

Though Smith’s characterization is oversized, his best moments occur when he’s cornered into dropping his façade. He’s playing a man who refuses to acknowledge anything besides his own opinion, yet he is hauntingly effective when forced into silence. Despite two Oscar nominations, Smith is rarely given credit for his dramatic acting chops. The scenes where he shows Williams’ vulnerability have a wounded quality that lingers long after the moment has passed. Whether surveying his wounds after his umpteenth violent run-in with neighborhood riff-raff (“Daddy got beat up again!” one of his kids announces), or realizing there’s no way he can help his daughter get out of her own head on the court, Smith excels at showing the wounded man under all the bravado. It’s the screenplay by Zach Baylin that keeps threatening to undermine his performance. There’s a dramatic skittishness here that can’t be ignored. The actor is willing to be truly unlikable in appropriate moments, but the film keeps making him unimpeachable.

If you know this story, you know that Richard Williams, Compton resident and big idea man, drafted a “plan” for his daughters Venus and Serena before they were born. The plan indicated that the duo would become enormous tennis superstars. There will be no deviations, so Williams puts the elder Venus ( Saniyya Sidney ) and her younger sibling/best friend Serena ( Demi Singleton ) through their practices even when it’s pouring rain outside. “I got two Michael Jordans,” he says, and it’s fun to watch him rub a former detractor’s face in Venus’ success once she starts winning. You’d probably agree with these early naysayers if a man presented you with a brochure for his kids’ future and demanded you accepted it without question. But this movie is guilty of that same sin. We don’t even hear what the entire plan is, and if you didn’t know any better, you’d think Venus and Serena were the first two Black women to play the game. No mention of the legacy of Althea Gibson can be found. I wondered if her career had any bearing on Richard’s decision to consider tennis.

Since Richard can’t reproduce by osmosis, “King Richard” reminds us the Williams sisters had a mother, Brandy, played by the always welcome Aunjanue Ellis . Ellis is somewhat trapped in the “supportive spouse who puts up with a bunch of crap yet has her own dreams” role, but she has two knockout scenes that reinforce why she’s one of my favorite currently working actors. The larger, and more impressive of the two, occurs when she finally has had enough of her husband’s self-martyrdom. Brandy reads her husband for filth, and the electricity between the fiery Ellis and the backpedaling yet still prideful Smith makes for one of the year’s best scenes. It’s a smaller version of Viola Davis ’ masterful scene opposite Denzel Washington in “ Fences ”—Brandy and Rose are saying the same thing, combatting and besting the same type of foe—but it’s equally memorable.

Director Reinaldo Marcus Green is much better at directing the dramatic scenes than he is at the tennis sequences. They have a flat, repetitive quality that doesn’t reflect just how exciting they were in real life. Since this has to end, as all sports movies do, with the big game, this could have been a major deficit. But “King Richard” is smart enough to know its strength is in its acting, so it wisely cuts between the play action and Richard and Brandy’s reactions and monologues. Green is also far better at conveying the intensity of the threats in Compton (a scene of shocking violence is superbly handled by the director and Smith) than he is at depicting the inherent racism prevalent at the lily-White clubs where Venus and Serena compete. They seem too gentle and jokey, though Jon Bernthal gives a good, frustration-filled turn as coach Rick Macci.

Much will be made of Smith’s performance, which is excellent, and I’m hoping Ellis gets all the praise she deserves. But Sidney and Singleton should also be commended for their excellent work as Venus and Serena. Both have difficult roles to play, that of the rising star and the budding one temporarily trapped in her shadow, respectively. Plus, unlike Will Smith, they have to mimic two of the greatest athletes to ever play any sport. They should be kept in the conversation, because it’s the acting across the board that ultimately saves “King Richard.” It earns the extra half-star that makes this a “thumbs up” review. At 140 minutes, the film is about half an hour too long, but everyone onscreen made the extra time far more tolerable than it could have been.

"King Richard" will be available in theaters and on HBO Max on November 19th.

Odie Henderson

Odie "Odienator" Henderson has spent over 33 years working in Information Technology. He runs the blogs Big Media Vandalism and Tales of Odienary Madness. Read his answers to our Movie Love Questionnaire  here .

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King Richard (2021)

Rated PG-13 for some violence, strong language, a sexual reference and brief drug references.

138 minutes

Will Smith as Richard Williams

Demi Singleton as Serena Williams

Saniyya Sidney as Venus Williams

Aunjanue Ellis as Oracene 'Brandi' Williams

Jon Bernthal as Rick Macci

Tony Goldwyn as Paul Cohen

Susie Abromeit as Robin Finn

• Reinaldo Marcus Green
• Zach Baylin

Cinematographer

• Robert Elswit
• Pamela Martin
• Kris Bowers

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4 Things to Know about King Richard , the Uplifting Movie about Venus and Serena Williams

• Michael Foust CrosswalkHeadlines Contributor
• Updated Nov 19, 2021

Richard is a hard-working, middle-aged man in Compton, Calif., who has a detailed plan for his children's lives. 

They'll learn tennis. They'll become world-famous. And they'll break racial barriers as African American champions in a predominantly white sport.  

First, though, he needs to find a tennis coach.

Despite his persistence, though, no one wants to give free lessons to his two athletic daughters, Venus and Serena, despite their raw skill. 

"It's like asking somebody to believe you've got the next two Mozarts in your house," one coach tells him. "... Maybe you can prove me wrong."

But then Richard stumbles upon a taker. The same man who coaches Pete Sampras is willing to coach one of the daughters – but only one of the daughters – for free. This means Venus will take lessons in person, while Richard will videotape the lessons for Serena.

It's an unconventional strategy, yes, but Richard believes his two daughters are diamonds in the rough. 

Will his plan succeed?

The new biopic movie King Richard (PG-13) tells the true story of Richard Williams, the father and tennis patriarch who raised two of the most talented players in the history of the sport. It stars Will Smith as Richard Williams, Saniyya Sidney as Venus and Demi Singleton as Serena.  

Here are four things you should know:

1. It's the Incredible Backstory to the Story You Know

Of course, you already knew that Venus and Serena have dominated the women's circuit the past three decades. King Richard is the remarkable story of how two girls who were raised in the middle of drugs and violence in Compton, Calif., grew up to break racial barriers.

As he tells Venus in the film shortly before her professional debut at age 14, "You're not just gonna be representing you – you're gonna be representing every little black girl on earth." (Venus was the first African American woman to be ranked No. 1 in the Open Era.)   

Will Smith is excellent as Richard Williams. 

2. It's Stirring and Family-Centric

Richard Williams teeters on the edge of insanity and genius for much of the film. He frustrates his wife when, on a whim, he fires a coach the family had loved. He hires a new coach – but then angers him by pushing away a $3 million contract between Venus and Nike. 

"$3 million! What's the problem here?" the coach shouts at Richard. (Nine months later, she signed a $12 million contract with Reebok.) 

But while Richard's strategy may seem crazy, his love for his daughters is never in doubt. He protects them from gang members. He fills his daughters with confidence. (He hangs "You are a Winner" posters around the court.) He wants them to have the success that most of their neighbors don't. He pushes them to succeed – but not so much that they'll burn out. 

Richard Williams searches for the perfect balance. In one of his most controversial moves, he pulls Venus and Serena off the Juniors circuit so they can enjoy childhood. (In the movie, the sisters' coach is dumbfounded, telling him that no pro player has ever succeeded without going on the Juniors circuit.) 

It's a lesson about parenting every mom and dad should embrace.

3. It's Tragic and Inspirational

King Richard is inspiring, yes, but it's also tragic. Venus and Serena have a father and mother who love and protect them. Many other kids in the neighborhood, though, do not – and a large segment of them end up in gangs. 

On two occasions, the film shows gang members brutally beating Richard, punching him in the stomach in one scene and pistol-whipping and kicking him in another. He often comes home bloodied and bruised. (In both instances, he had spoken up and defended his oldest daughter – a daughter who is academically gifted and does not play tennis.) 

"Daddy got beat up again," one of his kids says when he enters the door.

Richard, though, remains undeterred, telling them he "didn't have" a father to defend him – but that they will. 

"We've got champions in the other room," he tells his wife. "... Venus and Serena are gonna shake up this world."

The film teaches us about hard work, sacrifice, persistence, perseverance and humility (he doesn't want them to brag about their wins). It also urges us to strike a balance in life. We see Richard and his daughters practice at night in the rain. But we also see him pull the reins back on their career when their childhood is at stake. 

Faith is referenced several times in the film. (Richard and his family are Jehovah's Witnesses, although that's never made clear.)  

4. It's Probably not for Young Children

King Richard is inspiring, but its inclusion of violence, strong language (details below), and racial slurs (the n-word is said at least five times) may keep some families away.  

In one scene, Richard watches as a gang member is shot and killed in front of a store by another gang member. In another scene, gang members tell Richard – in graphic language – that the entire gang wants to have sex with his oldest daughter. 

For older family members, though, King Richard is well worth watching. 

It's uplifting to watch Richard put his life on the line for his children – not only financially but physically. 

It's one of the best movies of the year.  

King Richard is rated PG-13 for some violence, strong language, a sexual reference and brief drug references. Language details: s--t (3), a-- (2), d--n (1), h--- (3), f--- (1), n-word (5), GD (1)

Entertainment rating : 4 out of 5 stars

Family-friendly rating : 3 out of 5 stars 

Michael Foust has covered the intersection of faith and news for 20 years. His stories have appeared in Baptist Press ,  Christianity Today ,  The Christian Post , the   Leaf-Chronicle , the Toronto Star and the Knoxville News-Sentinel.

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King Richard (United States, 2021)

Across-the-board strong performances represent the upside of King Richard , director Reinaldo Marcus Green’s part bio-pic/part hagiography of Richard Williams (Will Smith), the (in)famous father of all-time tennis greats Venus (Saniyya Sidney) and Serena (Demi Singleton) Williams. With the two stars functioning as Executive Producers, it’s no surprise that the screenplay smooths many of their father’s rough edges and there are times when Richard comes across as more than a little too saintly. The most honest scene in the movie is one in which his wife, Brandy (Aunjanue Ellis), dresses him down for his narcissism.

King Richard is less a recreation of Richard’s life than a love story between one man and his daughters. Although it’s evident that Richard adores his children, the skeptical viewer might wonder where the line exists between “overbearing despot” and “involved parent.” Some of Richard’s tactics – such as intending to abandon his children three miles from home – border on abusive. There’s also a question about to what extent Venus’ success is (at least for him) about validating his planning and methods. The movie skates around criticisms of Richard’s exploitative nature and barely mentions his history of abandoning children from previous relationships. Venus and Serena’s titanic accomplishments are real and undeniable. The story of their upbringing as related in King Richard is idealized.

As would be expected from a movie about the rise of two young tennis stars (although the focus, given the time period, is much more on the older Venus), there’s plenty of court action. King Richard makes the mistake of becoming a hybrid sports movie during a climactic match. There’s too much fixation on individual points when the important thing is what happens after the bout. There’s no tension because, win or lose, we know who Venus will become. The movie as a whole isn’t about moments but a synthesis of all the factors that enriched the girls’ tennis DNA. Regardless of how much is true, how much has been softened and reshaped to suit the movie’s perspective, and how much is fabricated, the end result is compelling drama with top-notch performances and a feel-good denouement.

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‘King Richard’ Review: Father Holds Court

Will Smith and Aunjanue Ellis play the parents of Venus and Serena Williams in a warm, exuberant, old-fashioned sports drama.

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By A.O. Scott

The climactic scenes in “King Richard” take place in 1994, as Venus Williams, 14 years old and in her second professional tennis match, faces Arantxa Sánchez-Vicario , at the time the top-ranked player in the world. If you don’t know the outcome, you might want to refrain from Googling. And even if you remember the match perfectly, you might find yourself holding your breath and full of conflicting emotion as you watch the director Reinaldo Marcus Green’s skillful and suspenseful restaging.

You most likely know what happened next. Venus and her younger sister Serena went on to dominate and transform women’s tennis, winning 30 Grand Slam singles titles between them (plus 14 doubles titles as a team) and opening up the sport to aspiring champions of every background. (They are credited as executive producers of this film.) You might also know that those achievements fulfilled an ambition that their father, Richard Williams, had conceived before Venus and Serena were born.

In the years of their ascent, he was a well-known figure, often described with words like “controversial,” “outspoken” and “provocative.” “King Richard” aims in part to rescue Williams from the condescension of those adjectives, to paint a persuasive and detailed picture of a family — an official portrait, you might say — on its way to fame and fortune.

In modern Hollywood terms, the movie might be described as a two-for-one superhero origin story, in which Venus (Saniyya Sidney) takes command of her powers while Serena (Demi Singleton) begins to understand her own extraordinary potential, each one aided by a wise and wily mentor. But this is a fundamentally — and I would say marvelously — old-fashioned entertainment, a sports drama that is also an appealing, socially alert story of perseverance and the up-by-the-bootstraps pursuit of excellence.

It’s also a marriage story. When we first meet them, in the early 1990s, Richard (Will Smith) and his wife, Oracene (Aunjanue Ellis), are living with five daughters in a modest bungalow-style house in Compton, Calif. He works nights as a security guard, and she’s a nurse. Their shared vocation, though — the enterprise that is the basis of their sometimes fractious partnership — is their children.

This is an all-consuming task: to bring up confident, successful Black girls in a world that is determined to undervalue and underestimate them. Tennis, which Richard chose partly because of its whiteness and exclusivity, is only part of the program.

The children — Tunde (Mikayla Lashae Bartholomew), Lyndrea (Layla Crawford) and Isha (Daniele Lawson), along with Venus and Serena — lead highly structured, intensely monitored lives. (A disapproving neighbor calls the authorities, convinced that Richard and Oracene are being too hard on the girls.) This is partly protective, a way of keeping them away from what Richard ominously calls “these streets” — a menace represented by the hoodlums who harass Richard and the girls during practice sessions — but it also reflects his temperament and philosophy.

He likes slogans and lessons, at one point forcing the family to watch Disney’s “Cinderella” to teach the importance of humility. “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail” is one of his favorite mottos. There is nothing haphazard or sloppy about “King Richard,” and it succeeds because it has a clear idea about what it wants to accomplish. The script, by Zach Baylin, is sometimes unapologetically corny — if you took a drink every time the Williams sisters say “yes, Daddy” you’d pass out before Venus won her first junior match — but the warmth and verve of the cast make the sentimentality feel earned.

Smith, digging into Williams’s Louisiana accent and mischievous sense of humor, plays the character as a kindred soul of sorts — a charmer with a strategy. The white men who dominate the tennis world see him at first as someone to be brushed off or patronized. Later, when confronted with the undeniable and potentially lucrative fact of Venus’s talent, they are surprised to discover that Richard’s agenda doesn’t always align with theirs. Against the advice of two top coaches, he pulls Venus off the junior tournament circuit. He is unpersuaded by agents, sneaker executives and others who claim to have his daughters’ best interests at heart.

They see him, sometimes with affection, as stubborn and unreasonable, but he’s usually right. The film’s treatment of the coaches Paul Cohen (a suave, tan Tony Goldwyn) and Rick Macci (a manic, mustachioed Jon Bernthal) is gracious and skeptical. They are neither saviors nor villains, but rather men whose stake in the tennis system limits their perspectives. (The white tennis parents, on the other hand, are a pretty awful bunch, encouraging their children to cheat and berating them when they lose.) The coaches can see Venus and Serena’s potential as athletes, but only within the parameters of a status quo that the sisters will soon demolish.

That, too, is part of Richard’s plan. But if “King Richard” were just the streamlined chronicle of his triumph — if there weren’t at least a twinkle of irony in the title — it wouldn’t be convincing. Smith shows his usual, disarming skill at tactical self-deprecation, but it’s Ellis and Sidney who provide the necessary complexity. Venus, after all, is the center of the narrative: it’s not only her career but also her growing independence and self-awareness that keep us interested in what happens next.

And it’s Oracene who stands as the film’s crucial internal critic, the person who can challenge Richard’s sloganeering, bring him down to earth, and point out his failings. At times, this can seem like too much of a burden. Fairly late in the movie, she lays into Richard about his failed business and the children he has had with other women — all of it new information for the viewer, none of it ever mentioned again. The scene is not powerful because it exposes less-than-admirable aspects of Richard’s character, but because it shows how raw, messy and difficult even an apparently functional and harmonious marriage can be. (It also may foretell Richard and Oracene’s eventual divorce, in 2002.)

In the best Hollywood tradition, “King Richard” stirs up a lot of emotion while remaining buoyant and engaging. It’s serious but rarely heavy. Richard’s advice to his daughters when they step out on the court is to have fun, and Green (whose credits include the impressive “Of Monsters and Men” ) takes that wisdom to heart. This one’s a winner.

King Richard Rated PG-13. Brief violence, and some swear words and racial slurs. Running time: 2 hours 18 minutes. In theaters and on HBO Max .

A.O. Scott is a co-chief film critic. He joined The Times in 2000 and has written for the Book Review and The New York Times Magazine. He is also the author of “Better Living Through Criticism.” More about A.O. Scott

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‘King Richard’ Review: Will Smith and Aunjanue Ellis Inspire as Venus and Serena Williams’ Eye-on-the-Prize Parents

Indie director Reinaldo Marcus Green steps up his game big time in this engaging true-life drama about how Richard Williams steered his daughters to dominate the sport of tennis.

By Peter Debruge

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The vast majority of sports movies are about exceptional talent. “ King Richard ” is about exceptional belief: the conviction of one man, Richard Williams, that he could turn his daughters Venus and Serena into the world’s greatest tennis players. It’s a plan he hatched — together with wife/queen Brandi — even before the girls were born and put down in a 78-page manifesto, nearly all of which has come true (or so the film informs us over the end credits). Hindsight makes this a story worth telling. At the time, everyone thought he was crazy. “It’s like asking someone to believe you have the next two Mozarts living in your house,” says one coach, passing up the opportunity of a lifetime.

Featuring a grizzled and nearly unrecognizable Will Smith in the title role, “Monsters and Men” director Reinaldo Marcus Green ’s “King Richard” is a good old-fashioned Horatio Alger story for our time, detailing how a Black kid who grew up “running from the Klan” in Shreveport, La., set his mind to a goal and made it happen. He may have raised his five daughters in Compton — “ghetto Cinderellas,” in the character’s words — but through hard work and dedication, they achieved the American dream (to the tune of five Wimbledon titles and a $12 million contract, in Venus’ case).

That’s the reductive version of the Williams family story and the one everyone knows (even this critic, who’s never watched a pro tennis match in his life). But playing spectator to Venus’ success — while Serena readies herself in her sister’s shadow — is hardly the reason to seek out a two-and-a-half-hour biopic, especially when we know the outcome going in. The attraction here is discovering where the family came from, what they overcame and how Richard’s master plan played out in practice. And the beauty of Zach Baylin’s script is that while the arc is familiar, hardly a single detail could be described as clichéd, seeing as how the specifics are virtually unprecedented.

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Richard takes umbrage at a certain point when a pair of sports agents show up angling to represent Venus. They keep referring to her story as “incredible” (which it is), though Richard interprets that choice of words as a coded slight against their race (which it is too), explaining to these white guys that the lack of diversity in tennis was the specific reason he targeted that particular mountain for his daughters to climb. Later, when Venus thinks she’s ready to compete, he reminds her of the responsibility that she carries onto the court, as her future accomplishments will expand the potential of Black girls everywhere.

Sure enough, Venus and Serena Williams have become examples to millions of Americans, and this movie exists for their benefit and all those whom their story has not yet reached. This is inspirational filmmaking at its most effective, in part because it frames the family’s achievement as a matter of commitment above all, suggesting that practically anyone could do the same if they set their minds to it. Personally, having known a couple athletes who snapped after being driven to extremes by similarly single-minded parents, I wouldn’t recommend Richard Williams’ approach, but that’s not what “King Richard” is selling. (“Saint Richard” might have been a more appropriate title, even if the movie acknowledges his infidelity and other failings.)

Green shows the man coaching his daughters on the dilapidated Compton public tennis courts, rain or shine, under the watchful eye of local gangbangers. When a neighbor calls the police on them for being too hard on their kids, both Richard and Brandi (Aunjanue Ellis, the movie’s secret weapon) stand up and explain that they have to be tough, since “running the streets” is simply not an acceptable alternative. That’s the essence of the Horatio Alger formula: Effort and virtue are invariably rewarded. No one wants to hear the stories of all the other tennis parents Richard dismisses, grumbling that they ought to be shot.

But just as Americans like to see hard work rewarded, they are creeped out by the idea of stage parents — from the Jonbenet Ramsay phenomenon to “tiger moms” who drive their kids toward a predetermined career path. It’s not always clear what sets Richard apart from such obsessive personalities, other than his repeated insistence that he wants Venus and Serena to “have fun” at the sport and the later choice to pull them out of junior tournaments after Jennifer Capriati (who broke all sorts of youngest-ever records) was arrested with marijuana in a Florida hotel room.

Richard offers his girls both pressure and protection; he’s willing to get beaten up on behalf of his daughters, if necessary. In one unexpected scene, he takes the gun from his security job and plans to shoot the thug who’s been harassing his daughter, but fate has other plans. Green isn’t afraid to show the Williams family praying or putting their faith in a higher power (an important dimension of so many Americans’ lives seldom depicted in studio movies). Nor is he shy about acknowledging the countless prejudices working against them, whether personal or systemic (as when Brandi reacts to the Rodney King beating: “At least they got them on tape this time”).

Impressive as Smith is as the scruffy, slightly stoop-shouldered Richard — channeling the actor’s natural charisma into a kind of stubborn yet supportive focus — the movie offers him a formidable equal in Ellis as his wife. Publicly, Brandi lets Richard call the shots, but in private (where the movie’s most impactful scenes take place), she’s not afraid to remind him that the Williams family project is a group effort.

Saniyya Sidney and Demi Singleton are strong in their respective roles as young Venus and Serena, handling both the dramatic and athletic dimensions of their characters across a span of approximately three years. And Tony Goldwyn and Jon Bernthal merit mention as Paul Cohen and Rick Macci, the coaches who agreed to take them on, despite their unconventional background — not so much Compton as the fact of being trained by a hands-on dad who inserted himself into the process.

Judging by the success of Smith’s own superstar kids, Jaden and Willow, the subject is hardly an unfamiliar one, even if the actor’s approach to their careers is far different from his character’s. The Smith family and the Williamses have something in common in a country where white men hold disproportionate control over the gates of entry: By developing (or at least encouraging) talent that can make others rich, too, they wrest the power to their side of the bargaining table. You might argue that the Smith kids built on what the “Fresh Prince” started, whereas “King Richard” dreamt what no one from Compton had done before — and yet in both cases, they’re showing others how the long game is played.

Reviewed at Telluride Film Festival, Sept. 2, 2021. MPAA Rating: PG-13. Running time: 146 MIN.

• Production: A Warner Bros. Pictures release and presentation of a Star Thrower Entertainment, Westbrook, Keepin’ It Reel production. Producers: Tim White, Trevor White, Will Smith. Executive producers: Isha Price, Serena Williams, Venus Williams, James Lassiter, Jada Pinkett Smith, Adam Merims, Lynn Harris, Allan Mandelbaum, Jon Mone, Peter Dodd.
• Crew: Director: Reinaldo Marcus Green. Screenplay: Zach Baylin. Camera: Robert Elswit. Editor: Pamela Martin. Music: Kris Bowers.
• With: Will Smith, Aunjanue Ellis, Saniyya Sidney, Demi Singleton, Tony Goldwyn, Jon Bernthal, Andy Bean, Kevin Dunn, Craig Tate.

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King Richard Reviews

King Richard is inspirational, crowd-pleasing, and is a film that shows exactly how bio-pics should be told.

Full Review | Original Score: A- | Mar 1, 2024

King Richard is undoubtedly a Will Smith vehicle that allows him to, once again, flex his dramatic chops in a way that resembles his best performance in Michael Mann’s Ali.

Full Review | Sep 17, 2023

King Richard is not your ordinary sports movie or celebrity biopic...it unfolds like a compelling slice-of-life drama that just happens to include two of the greatest names in sports history.

Full Review | Aug 10, 2023

King Richard is a MUST WATCH Movie

Full Review | Jul 26, 2023

King Richard leaves you feeling inspired and empowered as Beyonce’s Be Alive closes out the credits.

The subject matter may speak more to me than to the average moviegoer due to my emotional connection to the sport, but it's the captivating story about a dedicated, loving father that ultimately grabs the viewers.

Full Review | Original Score: A | Jul 25, 2023

Whether you’re a member of the Black community, someone pursuing a dream, or simply someone that loves a feel good rags to riches story, this film will leave you inspired and a little choked up.

Full Review | Jul 19, 2023

The acting is phenomenal, with Will Smith, who plays lead Richard Williams, offering one of his best performances. It's one of those films that'll leave you feeling motivated and hopeful -- much-needed sentiments in today's world.

Full Review | Mar 31, 2023

A rare genuine crowd-pleaser with Will Smith’s best performance since Ali.

Full Review | Original Score: 4/5 | Oct 21, 2022

Baylin and Green incorporate depth, authenticity and attention to detail, as well as a groundedness behind the film’s real heroes—the Williams sisters, of course—to create an inspirational and crowd-pleasing feature.

Full Review | Oct 10, 2022

It is a film that transcends the trappings of sports biopics by giving life to the relationships within the family.

Full Review | Original Score: 3.5/4 | Sep 23, 2022

... Uplifting film that reminds us of the democratic power of love and talent to build community.

Full Review | Original Score: 4/5 | Aug 11, 2022

Though King Richard has a familiar framework, there is an infectious power, passion, and poignancy infused in every shot, allowing this story to represent the sports drama at its strongest and most soul-stirring, in wonderfully subversive ways

Full Review | Original Score: 8/10 | Jul 14, 2022

An easy win rather than an all-timer.

Full Review | Jun 25, 2022

Obvious in its worst sense... [Full review in Spanish]

Full Review | Jun 17, 2022

Smith is the absolute king of this conventional movie that opens a window into the dream of two strong-willed girls. [Full review in Spanish]

Full Review | Jun 8, 2022

The film turns into a hero a man who is nothing more than a child exploiter... Serena and Venus became in two of the best tennis players in history no thanks to their father, but in spite of him. [Full review in Spanish]

King Richard is a fierce story of Black identity and Black pride, depicting how cycles of racial abuse and violence take drastic, desperate measures to escape.

Full Review | Apr 19, 2022

Less a movie about sports than a movie about parenting.

Full Review | Original Score: 3/4 | Apr 1, 2022

From what I have read about and seen of the man, this is a rather water-downed version of Richard Williams.

Full Review | Original Score: 3/5 | Mar 30, 2022

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Will Smith’s Performance Makes King Richard Worth Seeing

Some will look at King Richard and wonder why anyone would want to make a movie about Richard Williams, father to tennis gods Venus and Serena, when his superstar daughters’ stories are right there and more momentous. But oblique approaches to well-known tales can have their own value, and it makes some sense here — as the film is less about the father and more about a fraught but loving family relationship at a pivotal time in all their lives. Richard was born and raised in the segregated South, and his journey was a dramatic one. “Where I grew up, Louisiana, Cedar Grove, tennis was not a game peoples played,” he tells us in the film’s opening narration. “We was too busy running from the Klan.” We don’t actually see his past — the film isn’t really a biopic — but we feel it, in the hunched posture, gravelly determination, and oddly deferential hard-headedness with which Will Smith plays him. It’s as if he’s absorbed a lifetime of hurt and hate so that his kids wouldn’t have to.

When we first meet Richard, he’s already well aware that Venus and Serena (Saniyya Sidney and Demi Singleton) are enormous talents. Indeed, it’s all part of his so-called plan, an elaborate, preordained trajectory of how Venus and Serena’s lives and careers will develop. “When I’m interested in a thing, I learn it,” Richard tells us. “How it works, how the best peoples in the world do it. And that’s what I did with tennis, with the girls.” That goes beyond just teaching them skills, however; it also involves breaking into the circuit of big-time trainers and clubs, a world in which a Black family from Compton is a rather rare sight. Wandering into the middle of a practice match between Pete Sampras and John McEnroe, overseen by legendary coach Paul Cohen (Tony Goldwyn), Richard insists that the bewildered Cohen watch his daughters play. Sure enough, within a few minutes, Cohen has taken on Venus as a student for free. (He can’t teach both kids, however, so Serena — who would, perhaps ironically, go on to become an even bigger tennis champion — has to stay home and continue lessons with her mom, Oracene, played by Aunjanue Ellis.)

Directed by Reinaldo Marcus Green, King Richard bounces along briskly through its somewhat predictable plot points. Cohen tells Richard that to get noticed, Venus needs to participate in junior tournaments. Soon, she’s destroying any and all opponents, leaving her young rivals and their parents angry, humiliated, and questioning their decision to play this sport in the first place. Richard loves to talk about his aforementioned plan as an iron-clad thing, but there seems to be more improvisation and backpedaling than he lets on. Despite Venus’s astounding success in juniors, Richard becomes convinced that the relentless grind of the circuit will psychologically ruin his daughter. So he changes coaches — to Florida-based Rick Macci (Jon Bernthal, doing a perfect impression of just about every other adult I met in the 1980s), whom he hopes will train Venus without the immediate promise of competitive glory.

Of course, Richard’s decisions about doing what’s best for his daughters never actually seem to involve his daughters, or Oracene, despite the fact that she appears to have been just as instrumental in helping the girls develop their skills. That’s not the only fundamental, or obvious, inconsistency in his approach. He wants the girls to enjoy their childhoods, and to not become victims to expectations and pressure — and yet he’s harder on them than just about anyone else. We find a perfect example of this in a scene when Richard makes the whole family sit down and watch a VHS of Disney’s Cinderella ; when he feels that the kids haven’t gleaned the right lessons from the movie, he makes them watch it again. The film wants us to feel love for this man, sure — but maybe a little terror, too. (Venus and Serena are producers of the film. Richard himself was reportedly uninvolved, and even reluctant.) We understand that, for all his wisdom and his dedication to the girls, there’s a slightly tyrannical streak to this man, a refusal to entertain opposing views. He wants his daughters to be kids, but he himself, it seems, has forgotten to be a grown-up.

There’s pathos here, too. And that’s where having Will Smith pays the most dividends. Because he is also such a huge movie star, we often overlook the actor’s transformative capabilities — as evidenced in previous films like the sublime Ali and the not-so-sublime Concussion . His performance here is not a full-on impersonation, as far as I can tell. Instead, he seems to have brought his own poetic physicality to the part. He plays Richard as a rough, gruff man, his bearing nearly collapsing under all the responsibilities he’s put on himself. It’s a touching turn, but not a particularly surprising one, thanks to a pro forma script that telegraphs all its big moments and rarely tries for the unexpected, keeping all its key emotional beats to the level of incident and dialogue — which feels like a bit of a waste when you have as dynamic and versatile a presence as Smith.

Still, when King Richard works, it sings. During one teary, late-night confessional, Richard tells Venus of a time when, as a child in Shreveport, he was beaten in front of his father by a group of white men for accidentally touching one of them. He recalls that his dad just ran away from the scene, ashamed and unwilling to help. So Richard has made a promise to himself. “I never want you to look up, and see your dad running away,” he tells Venus as he chokes back tears. When the girls are competing, however, we do see him turn away, keeping his head down or off to the side — as if, for all his outward confidence, he can’t bear to watch what happens. During a climactic match between Venus and Arantxa Sánchez Vicario, he’s out by the locker rooms, wandering the corridors, watching on TV, anywhere but in the stands. Earlier, we’d seen him bemusedly watching the aggressive parents of Venus’s (usually white) rivals petulantly yanking their kids away after their losses, as they loudly complained and dismissed their second- and third-place trophies. Richard may not be one of those outwardly hypercompetitive adults, but he’s not entirely free of his own fears and weaknesses either; he’s merely internalized it all. So that when he does take his seat in the stands — as he must — we understand that his daughters’ accomplishments will liberate and lift him as well.

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King Richard review – Will Smith serves up tennis stardom for Venus and Serena

Smith plays Richard Williams, the driven father of the US sporting sisters, in this well-crafted, authorised version of their story

S ome differing British and American attitudes to success are on show at this year’s London film festival. The Phantom of the Open is the story of a real-life amateur Brit golfer who fought his way up to become the world’s most adorable loser. King Richard, by contrast, is the story of a real-life amateur US tennis coach who fought his way up to help his daughters become the world’s most sensational winners.

Will Smith is never seen in long trousers in this film, only tennis shorts. He plays the 24/7-committed, fanatically focused and demanding Richard Williams, renowned father of Venus and Serena Williams. This is the man who, by sheer force of will, took his daughters and the rest of his family straight out of Compton and into the sunlit uplands of multimillion-dollar pro-sports triumph, along the way battling snobbery and racism. White parents on the junior circuit wrongly call his girls’ shots out and white sports agents smilingly tell Richard what he’s done with Venus and Serena is “incredible” while lowballing him with derisory offers. (In real life, Richard has had some things to say about the gamesmanship of white tennis players up against his daughters in their adult glory, but the film soft-pedals this.) Young Venus and Serena are played, respectively, with sympathy and charm by Saniyya Sidney and Demi Singleton; Aunjanue Ellis is their mother, Brandi, and Jon Bernthal their hyperactive coach Rick Macci, permanently exasperated by Richard’s capricious demands.

The film tracks the Williams family’s tough beginnings playing on scuzzy local courts, with Richard regularly getting roughed up when he tries to confront guys hitting on his underage daughters. He badgers a prestigious coach into giving his girls a chance, and then – with breathtaking chutzpah – fires this coach and takes Venus and Serena out of the punishing junior tournaments because he feels they need a regular upbringing. He hires Macci instead, and the movie nailbitingly climaxes with Venus’s extraordinary professional debut in 1994 at the age of 14, up against the world number two, Arantxa Sánchez Vicario.

Nobody actually calls Williams “King Richard” in this film, and maybe the Shakespearean connotations aren’t quite right. Venus and Serena Williams are co-producers on the project and this is very much the authorised version, making it clear at all times how essentially sweet natured and nice he was as a dad, hardly ever losing his temper. Smith’s performance has the easy, even balance of a gyroscope in full spin, and it’s almost an older version of the untroubled athleticism he brought to his Muhammad Ali in Michael Mann’s film 20 years ago – but essentially opaque. Enjoyable and well-crafted as it is, this movie can’t quite decide what to do with the tougher, darker side of Richard Williams. What was it really like living with someone so driven? So disciplinarian? And someone who, in the film, appears to favour one daughter over the other at crucial stages? That remains a mystery.

King Richard skates over the impact and import of its most dramatic scene. Goaded beyond endurance in the early years by the sneering guy who’s been insulting his daughter and beating him up, Richard as played by Smith grabs the gun he’s allowed to have as a part-time security guard, goes looking for the man, sees him coming out of a convenience store and then … well, it’s an extraordinary happenstance, a cosmically important and revealing event. But the film is almost embarrassed by its implications: there are no closeups on Richard’s stunned face to show what he thinks. Soon we’re back to nice, smiley, lovably stubborn Richard, who presumably surrendered that handgun when he quit the security guard job.

That doesn’t stop this being a strong, confident picture with winning performances from Sidney and Singleton.

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• Serena Williams

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‘King Richard’ Movie Review – An Authentic, Empowering Story of Persistence

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From ‘King Richard’ to ‘Gunda’: The 10 best films of 2021

• Deep Read ( 5 Min. )
• By Peter Rainer Special correspondent

December 16, 2021

I distinctly remember when I saw my first movie on the big screen in 2021. The experience of sitting in a big, booming theater, at long last, was a revivifying reminder of what first drew me to the movies – and what draws me still.

Despite many grace notes, this past year was predictably odd for movies. The coming year should restore some semblance of normalcy to film production, which has become faster and cheaper, at least in the low-budget indie realm.

Why We Wrote This

Moviegoers, including Monitor film critic Peter Rainer, were slowly drawn back to theaters this year. His list of 2021’s top offerings includes those that graced both big and small screens – and features some up-and-comers.

Streaming channels are making it possible for many more of these films to be seen than ever before – a boon for young, talented filmmakers.

The list this year reflects that trend. Among the films on it are “Mass,” a drama that explores forgiveness after a school shooting, from actor Fran Kranz in his debut as a writer-director, and the jubilant documentary about a 1969 music festival “Summer of Soul,” the first film directed by Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson. Those are joined by movies such as “King Richard,” an enjoyable biopic about the father of tennis greats Venus and Serena Williams, and the transporting “Gunda,” which invites us to experience the lives of farm animals.

I distinctly remember when I saw my first movie on the big screen in 2021. It was “In the Heights,” the Lin-Manuel Miranda musical, and perhaps I can be forgiven for thinking, as the movie started up, that it was the greatest film ever made. I felt this way because the experience of sitting in a big, booming theater, at long last, with larger-than-life actors parading across the screen, was a revivifying reminder of what first drew me to the movies – and what draws me still.

Since that time in June, I have seen many more movies in theaters, and quite a few more on the home screen. I’ve made my tentative peace with this bifurcated approach to moviegoing. It was true, after all, even before the pandemic, that movie audiences were increasingly migrating to the small screen. But I do hope, in vain perhaps, that in a post-pandemic world, audiences of all ages will once again throng the theaters for all kinds of movies, not just the blockbusters. 

Despite many grace notes, this past year was predictably odd for movies. How could it not be when so many of the offerings were completed before the pandemic hit, with their releases delayed sometimes for a year or more? The coming year should restore some semblance of normalcy to film production, which is great news, but, again, under what conditions will these new movies be experienced?

The silver lining in this current movie maelstrom is that filmmaking, at least in the low-budget indie realm, has become a faster and cheaper process. Streaming channels both large and small make it possible for many more of these movies to be seen than ever before. However these movies are made or viewed, it will be an incalculable boon if young, talented filmmakers, many of whom might otherwise have lacked the opportunity, break through and do important work.

I was grateful in this fraught movie year for even partial pleasures. Some of the films I was rather mixed about still contained wonders: the remarkable, shape-shifty Kathryn Hunter, who plays all three witches in “The Tragedy of Macbeth”; Olivia Colman’s simmering despair in “The Lost Daughter,” Maggie Gyllenhaal’s directorial debut; actor Tôko Miura’s personal driver, with her deep well of grievance, in “Drive My Car”; Ciarán Hinds and Judi Dench as the grandparents in “Belfast,” whose relatively brief screen time has a novelistic density; and, perhaps best of all, the freestyle verve of writer-director Paul Thomas Anderson’s coming-of-age-in-the-1970s mishmash, “Licorice Pizza.”

And now, in no particular order, my 10 best list, based on movies that opened in theaters and/or online, for a regular run in 2021.

1. The Disciple – Written and directed by Chaitanya Tamhane, this deeply heartfelt drama about a devotee of Hindustani classical music is one of the most powerful films I’ve ever seen about the ways in which art can both exalt and entangle the lives of its practitioners. Sharad (Aditya Modak), the young vocalist, must come to terms with the fact that, in the musical world he reveres, he has talent, not genius. And yet, by the end, what the movie is saying is that some things are even more important than art. (Netflix; rated TV-MA)

2. Quo Vadis, Aida? – The slaughter, in 1995, of more than 8,000 Bosnian Muslims in eastern Bosnia-Herzegovina is the centerpiece for this impassioned memorialization written and directed by Jasmila Žbanić, who was living in Sarajevo when the massacre occurred. It’s a political thriller but also, with its moral gravitas, so much more than that. Its main protagonist, Aida, a first grade teacher acting as a translator for United Nations officials, is played by Jasna Ðuričić, and the year held no finer performance. (Available on streaming services; not rated; English subtitles)

3. Gunda – A black-and-white documentary about the daily life of farm animals, with no humans in sight and no narration, may not sound like the stuff of greatness, but “Gunda,” directed by Victor Kossakovsky, transports us with a hushed reverence into their lives, especially Gunda and her dozen or so piglets. The film’s embrace of the natural world is absolutely transcendent. (Available on streaming services; rated G)

4. Summer of Soul – This jubilant documentary, the directorial debut of Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson, utilizes long-unseen footage of the 1969 Harlem Cultural Festival overflowing with great Black artists, among them Nina Simone, Sly and the Family Stone, Stevie Wonder, B.B. King, and Gladys Knight and her irrepressible Pips. (Hulu; rated PG-13)

5. The White Tiger – Few movies have depicted the indignities of the caste system as devastatingly as “The White Tiger,” written and directed by Ramin Bahrani from the Booker Prize-winning novel and featuring a chilling, quicksilver lead performance by Adarsh Gourav. The film plays like the anti-“Slumdog Millionaire,” and it’s all the truer for that. (Netflix; rated R)

6. Mass – Years after a high school shooting tragedy, the parents of the shooter, by arrangement, meet for the first time face-to-face in a church basement with the parents of a boy who died in the massacre. Fran Kranz’s writing-directing debut is a searing moral examination of the possibility of forgiveness. The ensemble cast members, Martha Plimpton, Reed Birney, Jason Isaacs, and, especially, Ann Dowd, are extraordinary. (Available on streaming services starting Dec. 28; rated PG-13)

7. King Richard – This is the most sheerly enjoyable crowd-pleaser of the year, with Will Smith’s best performance yet as Richard Williams, the exasperatingly driven father of tennis greats Venus and Serena Williams. Playing his wife, Aunjanue Ellis gives as good as she gets. Added bonus: Unlike most sports movies, the actors here actually look like they can play the sport. (HBO Max through Dec. 19, and in theaters; rated PG-13)

8. Milkwater – Writer-director Morgan Ingari’s auspicious feature debut is about a young woman (played by Molly Bernard) who agrees to act as a surrogate birth mother for her gay friend (Patrick Breen), and the emotional distance that comes between them. Touching, funny, unsentimental, and wonderfully acted. (Available on streaming services; TV-MA)

9. Boiling Point – During one night in a high-end London restaurant, filmed in a single take, the staff and chefs and clientele engage in enough hubbub (and cussing) to fill out a dozen lesser movies. Director and co-writer Philip Barantini is a wizard at drawing out sizzling performances on the fly. (Available on streaming services; rated R)

10. Language Lessons – Yet another terrific debut feature, this one is from director Natalie Morales, who co-stars in this two-character study with co-writer Mark Duplass. He plays Adam, who was gifted by his husband with 100 one-on-one online Spanish-language lessons before tragedy struck. He reluctantly goes ahead with the lessons – he in Oakland, California, and Cariño (Morales), his teacher, in Costa Rica. Don’t let the rom-com, Zoom-centric trappings put you off. The emotions coursing through this movie are deeply felt. (Available on streaming services; not rated)

A few other worthies : “West Side Story,” “Old Henry,” “Spencer,” “Pig,” “The Truffle Hunters,” “The Velvet Underground,” “Roadrunner: A Film About Anthony Bourdain,” and “The Last Duel.”

Peter Rainer is the Monitor’s film critic. 

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• Warner Bros.

Summary King Richard follows the journey of Richard Williams, an undeterred father instrumental in raising two of the most extraordinarily gifted athletes of all time, who will end up changing the sport of tennis forever. Driven by a clear vision of their future and using unconventional methods, Richard has a plan that will take Venus and Seren ... Read More

Directed By : Reinaldo Marcus Green

Written By : Zach Baylin

King Richard

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Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor

Oracene 'brandy' williams.

Jon Bernthal

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Josiah cross, calvin clausell jr., vaughn w. hebron, jimmy walker jr..

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Will smith in ‘king richard’: film review | telluride 2021.

The actor plays the determined father of Venus and Serena Williams in this complicated look at the early life of the two tennis superstars, directed by Reinaldo Marcus Green.

By Stephen Farber

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Reinaldo Marcus Green’s Telluride world premiere, King Richard , is an unusual picture to come from a major studio these days. Although Warner Bros. has made other inspirational sports movies, notably the Sandra Bullock drama The Blind Side , this new movie features nuances and complexities more likely to be found in indie releases. Although it will certainly be sold to emphasize Will Smith ’s Oscar-contending performance, the actor creates a more ambiguous protagonist than we expect to see in what might have been a formulaic story of a Black family’s triumph.

Richard Williams is the father of Venus and Serena Williams, who drove his two daughters to unprecedented success on the tennis court as their monomaniacal coach. If Richard isn’t quite the demonic stage parent that we’ve seen in movies like Gypsy (coincidentally, another Warner Bros. release), he shares some qualities with the obsessive Mama Rose, who poured her own frustrations into the lives of her children. Gypsy ultimately ended on a positive note, and so does this movie, but what intrigues is that it is willing to make us uncomfortable in its portrayal of a man motivated as much by his own disappointments as by love for his children. Zach Baylin’s script honors these nuances.

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Venue: Telluride Film Festival Cast: Will Smith, Aunjanue Ellis, Jon Bernthal, Saniyya Sidney, Tony Goldwyn Director:   Reinaldo Marcus Green Screenwriter:   Zach Baylin

The story focuses on Venus Williams’ early success, with Serena more in the background. And with the two sisters still at the top of their game after almost 30 years in the limelight, the film should hold undeniable fascination for audiences. It is far from a perfect film, but it tantalizes, thanks to the strong subject matter and the sharp characterizations and performances.

We are introduced to Smith’s Richard Williams as a determined, controlling man fighting to achieve recognition for his two young daughters, something he wants for himself as much as for them. Williams talks repeatedly about his own humiliations as a Black man growing up in the South at a time when the Ku Klux Klan remained a threat. Now living with his wife and five daughters in Compton, California, he carries a noticeable chip on his shoulder as he fights to find success for his children. An opening montage of Williams battling the skepticism of the haughty white tennis establishment is rich in humor, but with an undercurrent of sad desperation that is always apparent. Smith does some of his best acting in these early scenes, which mix Richard’s frustration, simmering resentment, and genuine love for his family.

Although Smith’s outstanding performance dominates the film, he is not the whole show. Aunjanue Ellis also shines as the girls’ sensible mother, who has the strength to defy her husband when he gets carried away on his ego trip. Hers is not as flashy a role as Smith’s, but she balances him with understated warmth and wisdom. Jon Bernthal is also excellent as Venus’ savvy coach; he brings humor and a believable mix of exasperation and resignation to his frustrating battles with Williams, which he almost invariably loses. As Venus, Saniyya Sidney plays with grit and tenderness, but she sometimes fades into the background.

The film is smoothly crafted, but it is also repetitive and overlong. It sometimes feels as if it’s replaying Richard’s conflicts with the condescending white tennis establishment. And despite its length, there are elements that are treated in a perfunctory manner, like Richard’s battles with the criminal elements in his Compton community.

The film builds to Venus’ entrée to professional tennis at the age of 14, and her fight for the championship doesn’t end in a formulaic way. (It’s worth remembering that the first Rocky movie ended with Rocky Balboa losing his fight and yet winning on a more profound level.) King Richard adheres to some sports movie formulas, but it’s most memorable when it plays against expectations.

Full credits

Distributor: Warner Bros. Production companies: Star Thrower Entertainment, Westbrook, Keepin' It Real Cast: Will Smith, Aunjanue Ellis, Jon Bernthal, Saniyya Sidney, Demi Singleton, Tony Goldwyn, Noah Bean, Kevin Dunn, Erika Ringor Director:  Reinaldo Marcus Green Screenwriter:  Zach Baylin Producers:  Tim White, Trevor White, Will Smith Executive producers:  Isha Price, Serena Williams, Venus Williams, James Lassiter, Jada Pinkett Smith, Adam Merims, Lynn Harris, Allan Mandelbaum, Jon Mone, Peter Dodd Director of photography: Robert Elswit Production designers:  Wynn Thomas, William Arnold Costume Designer:  Sharon Davis Editor:  Pamela Martin Music:  Kris Bowers Casting:  Rich Delia, Avy Kaufman

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King Richard Review

19 Nov 2021

King Richard

There’s a particular heartbreak in watching a man being beaten up in front of his little kids. We see it happen early on here, after Richard Williams ( Will Smith ) confronts a local hood for flirting with his young daughter Venus (Saniyya Sidney). It’s not, we learn, the first time it’s happened to the oft patronised, oft dismissed, oft humiliated father.

King Richard , exec-produced by Venus and Serena, is a love letter to his dogged ambition, without which, they’ve said, they would never have become who they are. A biopic that doesn’t feel like a biopic, a sports film that doesn’t feel like a sports film, it’s a freewheeling but intense family drama, a tribute to the love that bound them — even if their father’s bullishness repeatedly threatened to break it all up.

Smith’s version of Richard Williams doesn’t care what anyone thinks, with an often unbearable bullheadedness: he’s the Terminator of tennis parents, dismissing those who displease him, unafraid of insulting those with power, at one point ending a meeting he doesn’t like by farting. He’s a cocktail of confidence and insecurity, walking with a hunch that betrays how he really sees himself. Smith immerses himself in Williams, wielding only minor make-up (mostly eyebrows) to look more like, well, the rest of us — so hardly Charlize Theron/Aileen Wuornos levels of disguise, but enough to make it not seem like The Will Smith Show. It’s his best work in years.

There are no big cheesy moments. No montages. No melodrama.

Yet, despite the title character taking centre stage, Venus and Serena share the spotlight. The young Sidney and Demi Singleton give a pair of vibrant performances that convey Venus and Serena’s undeniable star quality, performed with a naturalism that makes the actors feel like real sisters. The whole family seems tight, including Aunjanue Ellis as Richard’s long-suffering wife Brandi, who exudes a quiet power, which ends up being not so quiet when she’s pushed.

Director Reinaldo Marcus Green broke out with 2018’s taut drama Monsters And Men , which explored race through the eyes of conflicted characters. And race is a heartbeat here too, bubbling in the background as Richard breaks down the doors of a gleaming white industry. Zach Baylin’s screenplay positions Richard as a man refusing to be hemmed in, refusing to know his place, refusing to fall into the hands of those that might want him and his family to fail. He is determined to climb out of Compton.

King Richard doesn’t reinvent the wheel, doesn’t take any wild swings, happy to deliver a solid crowdpleaser. But what’s great is what doesn’t happen. There are no big cheesy moments. No montages. No melodrama. It hits the beats you’d want but without falling into cliché, with warmth baked in so much that you’re swept along throughout, rooting for every Williams on screen. And it looks so pretty, Robert Elswit’s cinematography basking it all in a golden glow — and in love.

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• Entertainment
• Review: <i>The Lost King</i> Tells the Charming True Story of a Determined Amateur Historian

Review: The Lost King Tells the Charming True Story of a Determined Amateur Historian

R ichard III as a fictional character has a lot to answer for: Shakespeare painted him as a deformed, power-mad schemer. But Richard III as a real person? Evidence suggests he was more complicated than that. With his charming, sympathetic picture The Lost King, Stephen Frears digs into the fairly recent rehabilitation of the misunderstood monarch’s legacy —as well as the 2012 discovery of his long-lost bones beneath a Leicester parking lot.

Sally Hawkins plays Philippa Langley, the real-life amateur historian instrumental in figuring out where, exactly, the last Plantagenet King had been buried. Hawkins’ Philippa suffers from chronic fatigue syndrome , an illness that’s not always taken seriously. She’s close with her ex-husband (Steve Coogan), though even he occasionally loses patience with her. (Coogan and Jeff Pope wrote the script for The Lost King, adapting it from The King’s Grave: The Search for Richard III, by Langley and Michael Jones.) An encounter with a mansplaining Shakespeare expert—who has no idea what he’s talking about—so aggravates Philippa that she’s driven to learn more about the real Richard. Eventually, she persuades a top archaeologist (Mark Addy) to dig for the ruins of the church where Richard was said to have been interred, rather ignobly, in 1485.

Read more reviews by Stephanie Zacharek

Langley’s conviction about that burial site was largely a ripple of intuition, and Hawkins plays her as a woman forced to fight skepticism and dismissal at every turn: she radiates a brazen confidence that shines through any surface impression of timidity. In the end, Philippa’s understated persistence wins the day, leading her to a dramatic arrangement of bones that, given the fallen King’s famous spinal curvature, are almost literally shaped like a question mark—though what they really represent, at long last, is the finality of an answer.

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