FAQ

The Express is based on Robert C. Gallagher's 1983 biography Ernie Davis, The Elmira Express: the Story of a Heisman Trophy Winner. The book was adapted for the screen by American screenwriter Charles Leavitt.

Although scarce, there are a number of movies that feature "first Black" athletes outstanding in their fields, mostly Americans. For example, The Jackie Robinson Story (1950) (1950) is about the first Black major league baseball player, and The Joe Louis Story (1953) (1953) depicts the first Black heavyweight boxing champ. Remember the Titans (2000) (2000) features Denzel Washington as Herman Boone, the first Black coach to integrate high school football. Glory Road (2006) (2006) is about the first all-Black starting line for a college basketball team in America's NCAA national championships. The Longshots (2008) (2008) is based on the real life story of Jasmine Plummer, the first Black female athlete to participate in the Pop Warner football tournament. There are some topic outside of athletics as well. The Tuskegee Airmen (1995) (1995) covers the U.S. Armed Forces' first Black combat aviators, Men of Honor (2000) (2000) tells the story of Carl Brashear, the first Black U.S. Navy diver, and fairy tale The Princess and the Frog (2009) (2009), is about Princess Tiana, Disney's first Black princess. Marshall (2017) (2017) may be of interest, since deals with the first Black person to be an associate justice of the United States, but it focuses on the part of his career before he became a judge of any sort (when he was an attorney with the NAACP).

Also of note are movies that feature "first Black" actors to win Academy Awards. These include movies by Sidney Poitier, who was the first Black to win the award for Best Actor in Lilies of the Field (1963) (1963) and Louis Gossett Jr., the first to win the award for Best Supporting Actor in An Officer and a Gentleman (1982) (1982). Actress Halle Berry won the award for Best Actress for her role in Monster's Ball (2001) (2001). The first Best Actress in a Supporting Role went to Hattie McDaniel for her role as Mammy way back in Gone with the Wind (1939) (1939). Ms McDaniel also has the distinction of being the "first Black" ever to win an Oscar.