Michael Bay’s Benghazi drama ’13 Hours’ set for MLK weekend release
A Benghazi drama directed by Michael Bay -- pictured at the 2014 Beijing opening of “Transformers: Age of Extinction” -- is set to open over the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday next year.
Director Michael Bay’s foray into geopolitical drama has a release date and a new subtitle. “13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi” will open Jan. 15, over the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday weekend, Paramount Pictures announced Tuesday.
Adapted by Chuck Hogan from Mitchell Zuckoff’s nonfiction book, “13 Hours” is to recount the terrorist attacks on a U.S. diplomatic compound and a CIA annex in Libya that left four Americans dead in September 2012, including Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens. The story focuses on the six-man security team that fought to repel the attackers.
The cast includes John Krasinski, James Badge Dale, Pablo Schreiber and Dominic Fumusa.
By releasing a topical and potentially polarizing military-themed drama over MLK weekend, Paramount will be taking a page from the Warner Bros. playbook: That studio’s “American Sniper” had its wide release over the same frame earlier this year and went on to massive commercial success.
“13 Hours” is currently slated to open against the young-adult sci-fi tale “The 5th Wave” and the sequels “Ride Along 2” and “The Nut Job 2.”
In addition to the “13 Hours” announcement, Paramount confirmed that the next “Star Trek” movie is titled “Star Trek Beyond.” Justin Lin is directing the third installment of the rebooted space-faring franchise, which is to open July 8, 2016.
Follow @ogettell for movie news.
Only good movies
Get the Indie Focus newsletter, Mark Olsen's weekly guide to the world of cinema.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
