THE LEAGUE

Told through the personal experience of notable Negro League umpire Bob Motley, the pic explores Black baseball as a stage for some of the world’s best athletes, an economic and social pillar of Black communities, and the unintended consequences of MLB integration. The rise and fall of the Negro Leagues follows the arc of race history in the United States. Featuring interviews from Negro League players like Buck O’Neil and Hall of Fame Inductees Monte Irvin, Willie Mays, and Hank Aaron, The League celebrates some of the 20th century’s best athletes and entrepreneurs while grappling with America’s difficult march toward equality, including a discussion on the dissolution of the Negro League, which led to the downturn of hundreds of Black-owned businesses.

Directed by Sam Pollard (“MLK/FBI”) and executive produced by Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson (Oscar-winning “Summer of Soul”).