Netflix Releases Trailer For Idris Elba-Starring Drama Concrete Cowboy

Netflix has released a trailer for Concrete Cowboy, one of the many films the streaming service indicated back in January would be coming out this year as part of its annual one-movie-every-week release schedule. The Western drama, due to hit Netflix on April 2, had its world premiere at the Toronto Film Festival last fall, and is based upon the novel Ghetto Cowboy by Greg Neri--which in turn was inspired by the real life Black urban cowboys in North Philadelphia.

The film possibly may be best summed up 10 seconds into the trailer when a teenager (Caleb McLaughlin) walks into his estranged father's (Idris Elba) house and remarks, "There's a horse... in your house." That moment seems to tee the film up as an odd comedy, but the rest of the trailer resets and shows the film to explore deeper themes of overcoming adversity, coming to grips with identity, and similarly coming to grips with community and family. Check out the clip below.

From the official synopsis: "When 15-year-old Cole is expelled from school in Detroit, he is sent to North Philadelphia to live with Harp, his estranged father. Harp finds solace in rehabilitating horses for inner city cowboys at the Fletcher Street Stables, a real-life black urban horsemanship community that has provided a safe haven for the neighborhood residents for more than 100 years. Torn between his growing respect for his father's community and his reemerging friendship with troubled cousin Smush (Jharrel Jerome), Cole begins to reprioritize his life as the stables themselves are threatened by encroaching gentrification."

Concrete Cowboy is directed and co-written by Ricky Staub (Snow White and the Huntsman), who wrote the script with Dan Walser (The Cage). In addition to McLaughlin, Elba, and Jerome, Concrete Cowboy also co-stars Byron Bowers (The Chi), Lorraine Toussaint (Orange is the New Black), and Clifford "Method Man" Smith (The Wire).