Aaron Sorkin’s ‘The Trial of the Chicago 7’ to Premiere on Netflix in October

Aaron Sorkin‘s latest feature is heading to Netflix, and the streaming giant just announced a release date for the political film today. The Trial of the Chicago 7 will make its streaming debut on Oct. 16, only weeks before the 2020 election, Variety reports.

Netflix secured the filmmaker’s upcoming protest movie earlier this month, paying over $50 million to close the deal. Paramount was the original distributor for The Trial of the Chicago 7, which was planned for a theatrical release before the coronavirus pandemic hit.

Sorkin’s drama tells the story of the trial that took place after peaceful anti-war protests at the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago turned violent. Protest organizers Abbie Hoffman, Jerry Rubin, Tom Hayden and Bobby Seale were charged with conspiracy to incite a riot after the protests took a turn, and the trial that followed went down in history.

Netflix released first look photos on Twitter today with the date announcement, giving fans a glimpse at the stars of the upcoming film. “We will never get over the big hair energy in these first look photos,” Netflix posted.

Sacha Baron Cohen (Hoffman), Eddie Redmayne (Hayden), Mark Strong (Rubin) and Yahya Abdul-Mateen (Seale) star in The Trial of the Chicago 7. The cast also includes Michael Keaton (Ramsey Clark), John Carroll Lynch (defendant David Dellinger), Alex Sharp (defendant Rennie Davis) and Frank Langella (Judge Julius Hoffman), as well as Mark Rylance (attorney William Kuntsler).

Sorkin, who is known for his work on the political drama The West Wing, has created multiple award-winning films over the years. He won a an Academy Award for his The Social Network screenplay in 2011, and was nominated for both Molly’s Game and Moneyball. Sorkin both wrote and directed The Trial of the Chicago 7.