Michael Ealy Explains What Drew Him to Psychological Thriller 'Fatale'

Fatale is a story of crime, infidelity and unexpected twists, starring Michael Ealy and two-time Oscar winner Hilary Swank.

Ealy plays married sports agent Derrick, who has a one-night stand in Las Vegas with mysterious police detective Val (Swank). Once he leaves Vegas, Derrick forgets all about Val, until she turns up at his mansion in Los Angeles as the lead investigator of a crime. Val is nothing but trouble, and Derrick’s life unravels as he falls deeper into her trap.

The Hidden Empire Film Group production is directed by Deon Taylor, who previously worked with Ealy on The Intruder. Ealy said he signed on to the film based on Taylor’s recommendation.

“He hyped it. Then he hyped it a little bit more by saying, ‘I got Hilary Swank on board to play Val,'” the actor told Urban Hollywood 411 at Fatale‘s virtual press junket. “I said, ‘Yes, I’m going to do it. Now let me just read it.'”

After finishing the script, Ealy said he was hooked.

“This is a role that just doesn’t come around often enough. Like, to be able to go through all of these machinations as a character, there’s just so much happening in this one little movie, and I don’t really see that a lot,” he explained.

Fatale’s supporting cast includes Mike Colter, Damaris Lewis, Danny Pino, and Geoffrey Owens.

The thriller was originally scheduled for a summer 2020 release, but the date shifted multiple times because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Eventually, some theaters opened back up under the CinemaSafe program — a set of health and safety guidelines adopted by the National Association of Theatre Owners — and Taylor pushed for Lionsgate to release the film.

“As a Black filmmaker, I don’t think people realize how hard we’ve been fighting to get our movies in theaters,” Taylor said at the junket. “So, whatever the opportunity was that I could actually get this film into theaters… with CinemaSafe, I was like, I’m doing it.”

The movie arrived in theaters on Dec. 18, and is available on-demand, starting Jan. 8. You can catch it on Apple TV, Vudu, Prime Video, Redbox, FandangoNOW and other platforms listed here.

Fatale is produced by Taylor, Swank and Roxanne Avent Taylor. Watch the trailer below: