To be Jesse Owens

Like Jesse Owens himself, a new film about the historic athlete’s place in history transcends color, creed, society and time. “Race” brings to the modern screen the anguish, sentiment and significance of epic tension felt across the world stage 80 years ago. 

The story of Owens, who won four gold medals in the 1936 Olympics as the clouds of World War II were gathering, is told in the Focus Features release. It was written by Joe Shrapnel and Anna Waterhouse, directed by Stephen Hopkins, and stars Stephan James, Jason Sudeikis, Jeremy Irons and William Hurt.  

James, already recognized for his 2014 portrayal of civil-rights activist John Lewis in the critically acclaimed “Selma,” again finds himself cast in a movie that illuminates a critical moment and a key figure in history. 

“It’s still hard to fathom that I was able to tell this story,” James said of his starring role in “Race.” “That somebody gave me the keys to this thing, because he’s such a big, big hero ... not just an American hero, but a world hero.”

“Race” is not only the story of a black American who helped change the narrative of the future. It is also a vivid snapshot of a tragic point in history, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party were proclaiming that the 1936 Olympics would prove Aryan superiority over all
other races.

The film opens in Cleveland, where Owens established himself as a natural runner and top competitor who later starred on the Ohio State University track and field team. In the film, James replicates one of Owens’ most remarkable accomplishments, when he set three world records in 45 minutes, winning the 100-yard dash, broad jump and 220-yard low hurdles in 1935. 

In the film, Ohio State coach Larry Snyder tells Owens he knows he can run, then asks if he can win at a level higher than any other. “Race” captures the battles Owens confronted on many levels to show the world that athletic success wasn’t a matter of race, but of talent and determination. 

The film also depicts a time when societies and nations were at odds about ethnicity. Just before World War II, racism in the United States was largely overshadowed by the deadly conduct of Nazi Germany. Owens learned to block out the noise of those who tried to make his destiny about skin color, a point James portrays under the director of the film, Hopkins, whom the actor credits with painting the picture.

“It’s not only an incredible acting experience, to be in a period piece where you put yourself in a space where you’re trapped in a certain world,” James explained. “In ‘Selma,’ I’m trapped in the 1960s during the civil rights movement. And for ‘Race,’ I’m in the 1930s in America and then in Nazi Germany. So for me, it’s an acting experience and a learning experience.” 

To play Jesse Owens, James had to become Jesse Owens. “It was really an experience where I was literally living like Jesse,” he adds. “Imagine being the guy who broke three world records in 45 minutes at Ohio State, being literally the most talented man in what you do, and not being able to compete on the world stage in your prime. How does anyone go through those sorts of pressures knowing that you are one of the few who can actually set an example when people are looking up to you?”

The central conflict was whether Owens should go to Berlin for the games. Should he go and prove a point by showing them up? Or should he prove a point by not going at all and standing in solidarity with the oppressed? What would be his legacy? 

“I think he had a lot of internal conflict that he had to deal with, and I in turn had to internalize some of that stuff,” James said. “We must remember the year 1936. The climate of the times would dictate the emotions of those who were there. Mussolini’s Italy was glorying in its terrible victory over Ethiopia. The Spanish civil war was but one month old. Chancellor Hitler had just moved his troops into the Rhine-Main. World War II was three years away.” 

“German newspapers were boasting of the Aryan racial supremacy theory of a master race,” Owens once said in a documentary film about his life. “The Nazi-controlled newspapers matter-of-factly mentioned that the United States team would be helped in the competition by members of the black legion. I was one of the black legionnaires. This was the climate of the times in the summer of 1936.” 

Michael Hjelmstad is a Marine Corps veteran, writer, film producer and member of American Legion Post 43 in Hollywood, Calif.