Ryan Coogler and Michael B. Jordan are teaming up with Ta-Nehisi Coates for a film called Wrong Answer.
The film will tell the story of a group of students in Atlanta who participated in an intricate conspiracy to cheat their way through standardized tests, with the script written by Coates.
Coogler will direct, while Jordan will play the role of Damany Lewis, a math teacher at Parks Middle School near Atlanta. Lewis was part of the largest academic cheating scandal in U.S. history, after joining a group of eleven educators who conspired to artificially lift the standardized test scores of their students. The students themselves were severely underprivileged, and despite their best efforts, the educators were not able to help them reach the standards set by the No Child Left Behind program.
So, Lewis, who in the film will be a heroic force for good in the students’ lives, helping with sports and other activities, took part in the effort to keep the school and the students from being shuttered by boosting their scores. Thus, Wrong Answer will not be a simple corruption story but will also explore the failings of the school system.