Jesse Williams’ directorial debut is off to a rocky start

Jesse Williams appears to be rethinking his upcoming film’s social media marketing campaign.

The Grey’s Anatomy star couldn’t wait until Monday to announce that he would be making his directorial debut Down. The film tells the story of Mamie Till Mobley, mother of Emmett Louis Till, a 14-year-old black teenager who was lynched after being accused of flirting with a white woman in the South in 1955. Mobley insisted that his casket be open at his funeral, which is credited with starting the civil rights movement. The film was based on the 2005 documentary by Keith A. Beauchamp entitled The Untold Story of Emmett Louis Tillprompting the U.S. Department of Justice to reopen Till’s case in 2004.

Tsick Filming is scheduled to begin next summer, with Whoopi Goldberg serving as producer and actress on the project.

Jesse Williams attends Quincy premiere at the Princess of Wales Theater in Toronto, September 9, 2018. (Photo: Che Rosales/WireImage)

Williams shared the exciting news along with a series of photos of Mamie Till, accompanied by the slogan: “Believe in something. Even if it means sacrificing everything.” The slogan comes from Nike’s recent “Just Do It” campaign starring Colin Kaepernick.

(Photo: @JaleelSpeaQs on Twitter)

Photo: @BaconTribe via Twitter

Many people found the use of Nike’s message disrespectful.

Jesse Williams posted a photo of Mamie Till with a Kaepernick quote, as if she had made the decision to sacrifice her son for… murder.

Let’s think about things before we post a meme about it.

— Happenstance the Rapper (@BeezHunny) September 24, 2018

Jesse Williams just made Emmett Till a Nike meme. Way to go…..

— I tweet (@c__suave) September 24, 2018

Nike meme featuring Emmett Till’s mother to promote the movie???? I hate Jesse Williams. Wow.

— I AM MALCOLM X. (@itssnaz_) September 24, 2018

A black mother’s pain over the horrific murder of her son should not be considered a “victim” and even her decision to have an open casket is not properly portrayed as a “victim” or something to believe in…

Please think about it. This hasn’t been fully thought through, sir.

— (@JagunEsq) September 24, 2018

You really need to be more careful when using black historical topics on social media (memes, gifs, testimonials). Jesse Williams’ entire advertising campaign for Till’s film is distasteful and disrespectful. I wonder what this movie will be like #BlkTwitterstory

— Jasmin H. (@jhsting32) September 24, 2018

Williams, who is well known for his social activism, deleted the photos from Twitter and Instagram. Yahoo Entertainment reached out to the actor’s rep for comment but did not immediately receive a response.

Williams himself addressed the issue on Tuesday in a lengthy Instagram post.

(Editor’s note: This story was originally published on September 24, 2018 at 6:40 p.m. EST.)

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