President Barack Obama hosted a White House screening of “Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom,” with a small gathering that included Mandela’s daughters, Zindzi and Zenani.
Also in attendance was the movie’s star Idris Elba, director Justin Chadwick, producer Anant Singh and actress Naomie Harris, who plays Mandela’s wife, along with Harvey Weinstein and Georgina Chapman.
The White House released a picture from the event, showing President Obama chatting with Mandela’s two daughters before the screening, which was closed to the press. Obama spoke before the film and and noted that he was still in law school when Mandela was released from prison in 1990, and talked of how it was an important time to honor the former South African leader, sources said. “The human spirit can’t be contained forever. Truth and justice will eventually win out,” Obama said.
This is only the latest high profile event for the movie, as Hillary Clinton will host a screening at the Kennedy Center on November 20. The movie starts limited release on November 29.
Also present were South African Ambassador Ebrahim Rasool; former Time editor Richard Stengel, newly tapped for a State Department post; and White House senior adviser Valerie Jarrett.
