David Oyelowo had been trying to get a version of “Lawmen: Bass Reeves” made for 10 years.
The project about the real-life Black peace officer who worked the U.S. “Indian Territory” in the 1880s and was the likely inspiration for the Lone Ranger came to Oyelowo in 2013 via producer David Permut (Hacksaw Ridge). “I didn’t know anything about Reeves as a historical figure or any of the amazing exploits he had done,” Oyelowo said. If he had known about Reeves as a kid, he’s sure that he would have been “obsessed” with the lawman, and he figured that everyone would have been just as enthusiastic.