Usher stars in upcoming film about reformed Klansman

Usher is about to take a dramatic turn in an upcoming film based on a true story.

The Atlanta singer plays the high school friend of a Ku Klux Klan member in the February 28, 2020 release, “Burden.”

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A trailer for the film, which won the U.S. Dramatic Audience Award upon its premiere at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival, features Usher in scenes alongside Oscar winner Forest Whitaker. It’s Whitaker’s character, Reverend Kennedy, who takes in Klansman Mike Burden. That follows the opening of a KKK museum in the small South Carolina town in 1996. Kennedy tries to keep tensions from boiling over, but his family, including longtime Atlanta actress Crystal R. Fox’s character, Janice Kennedy, isn’t keen on him taking in Burden. Played by Garrett Hedlund, Burden had been influenced to change his ways based on his relationship with Usher’s Clarence Brooks, as well as falling in love with a single mother.

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"Every character specifically has a journey of their own, and for me, I'm always looking for pieces that have depth, meat," Usher told Variety. "When you look at these characters, do you find something significant in yourself as the viewer that can help you begin that journey or either conclude that journey if you've already been on it? And hopefully, it sparks a lot of conversation about who we are and what we need to do to love more."

Usher's part in the film, which 11Alive reported was shot just outside of Atlanta, follows his cameo appearance in Jennifer Lopez's "Hustlers." Meanwhile, famed theater actress Fox has been busy working on Tyler Perry's "The Haves and The Have Nots." She also had a stint on HBO's "Big Little Lies."

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