Emmy winning director Ava DuVernay joins forces with athlete and activist Colin Kaepernick for Netflix drama Colin in Black and White, a brand new miniseries about the former NFL star’s teenage years.
Kaepernick was adopted by white parents and raised in a largely white neighbourhood, which made him feel isolated at times as his family failed to understand the issues that were affecting him.
However, it was a loving home overall as his adoptive parents were supportive of him pursuing his dream of becoming a quarterback, while also nurturing an early talent for baseball and basketball too.
The Get Down’s Jaden Michael portrays a young Kaepernick in the six-episode series, which will juggle an autobiographical story with education on racial issues facing Black people today.
Read on for everything you need to know about the Colin in Black and White cast on Netflix.
Colin Kaepernick plays Himself
!["Colin]("https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/3/2021/09/colin_in_black_and_white_netflix-240f4f8.jpg?quality=90&resize=620%2C413" "\"colin_in_black_and_white_netflix\"")
Who is Colin Kaepernick? Kaepernick is a former American footballer for the NFL, who made headlines in 2016 when he protested against racial inequality and police brutality by taking a knee during the national anthem. He has not been signed by a professional team since 2017, but recently confirmed he has been keeping up his training regimen and would be ready to get back into the sport at any time. In addition to depicting his teenage years, Colin in Black and White features Kaepernick himself as he looks back on his memories and explains racial issues prevalent in society today.
Jaden Michael plays Colin Kaepernick (teenage)
!["Jaden]("https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/3/2021/10/jaden_michael_colin_in_black_and_white-68bd3be.jpg?quality=90&resize=620%2C413" "\"jaden_michael_colin_in_black_and_white\"")
Who is Colin Kaepernick? The version of Kaepernick we see most of in this series is a high school student who dreams of being a quarterback, but will have to work hard to secure an extremely competitive football scholarship. The series also examines moments in Kaepernick’s youth when he was the victim of racial discrimination, opening his eyes to the fact his life experience would be different to that of his white adoptive parents.
What else has Jaden Michael been in? Michael has featured in Baz Luhrmann’s musical drama The Get Down and CBS crime drama Blue Bloods, while he’s also lent his voice to children’s shows Dora The Explorer and The Bug Diaries.
Nick Offerman plays Rick Kaepernick
!["Rick]("https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/3/2021/10/colin_in_black_and_white_rick_kaepernick-b69bf77.jpg?quality=90&resize=620%2C413" "\"colin_in_black_and_white_rick_kaepernick\"")
Who is Rick Kaepernick? Rick is Colin’s adoptive father, who has raised him with wife Teresa since he was just five weeks old. They are well-meaning parents, but can be insensitive towards Black culture and racial issues.
What else has Nick Offerman been in? Offerman is best known for his comedy work, having played the popular role of Ron Swanson in US sitcom Parks and Recreation, as well as appearing in We’re The Millers and the Jump Street films. More recently, he has taken on more dramatic work in the likes of Fargo and Devs.
Mary-Louise Parker plays Teresa Kaepernick
!["Teresa]("https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/3/2021/10/teresa_kaepernick-2534342.jpg?quality=90&resize=620%2C413" "\"teresa_kaepernick\"")
Who is Teresa Kaepernick? Teresa is Colin’s adoptive mother and a nurse. Though she does love him dearly, there are several moments in the series where she fails to give him the support he needs as a young Black man.
What else has Mary-Louise Parker been in? Parker is perhaps best known for her lead role of Nancy Botwin in the comedy-drama series Weeds, while she has also appeared in The West Wing, The Blacklist and Mr Mercedes. On the big screen, she is known for starring in action film RED and its 2013 sequel, as well as psychological thriller Red Dragon.
Mace Coronel plays Jake
!["Mace]("https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/3/2021/10/mace_coronel_colin_in_black_and_white-142d9e8.jpg?quality=90&resize=620%2C413" "\"mace_coronel_colin_in_black_and_white\"")
Who is Jake? Jake is one of Colin’s closest friends at high school.
What else has Mace Coronel been in? Coronel rose to fame as a child, playing one of the title roles in Nickelodeon series Nicky, Ricky, Dicky & Dawn. He went on to star in Wireless, a miniseries produced for the short-lived mobile streaming service Quibi.
Amarr Wooten plays Eddie
!["Amarr]("https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/3/2021/10/colin-in-black-and-white-amarr-wooten-c9ada90.jpg?quality=90&resize=620%2C413" "\"colin-in-black-and-white-amarr-wooten\"")
Who is Eddie? Eddie is another of Colin’s best friends at high school.
What else has Amarr Wooten been in? The actor, who sometimes is credited simply as AMARR, has previously appeared in comedy series Raven’s Home and American Housewife. More recently, he bagged a key role in The CW’s brand new remake of The 4400.
Klarke Pipkin plays Crystal
!["Jaden]("https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/3/2021/10/colin-in-black-and-white-crystal-6f43302.jpg?quality=90&resize=620%2C413" "\"colin-in-black-and-white-crystal\"")
Who is Crystal? Crystal is a fellow pupil at Colin’s high school who he develops a crush on and takes to the prom.
What else has Klarke Pipkin been in? Pipkin appeared in Nickelodeon children’s movie Escape From Mr Lemoncello’s Library.
Xosha Roquemore plays Erica
!["Xosha]("https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/3/2021/10/colin-in-black-and-white-2f2a74d.jpg?quality=90&resize=620%2C413" "\"colin-in-black-and-white\"")
Who is Erica? Erica is a hairdresser who Colin goes to for help fixing his cornrows.
What else has Xosha Roquemore been in? Roquemore was a main cast member on US sitcom The Mindy Project, following it up with roles in Jim Carrey’s I’m Dying Up Here, Don Cheadle’s Black Monday, and LeBron James’ Space Jam: A New Legacy.
Chris O’Neal plays Dwayne
!["Chris]("https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/3/2021/10/chris_oneal-6191e07.jpg?quality=90&resize=620%2C413" "\"chris_o'neal\"")
Who is Dwayne? Dwayne is a baseball player that Colin briefly meets while travelling the country for games. The two quickly understand each other, having both suffered the same discrimination while on the road.
What else has Chris O’Neal been in? O’Neal is another Nickelodeon alum, having risen to fame in the cast of children’s comedies How to Rock and Swindle. Since then, he has joined the cast of Netflix’s teen drama Greenhouse Academy.
Colin in Black and White is streaming on Netflix from Friday 29th October. Read our guides to the best series on Netflix and the best movies on Netflix, check out more of our Drama coverage or visit our TV Guide.