Dolores Huerta Biopic Update Shared As Filmmaker Gregory Nava Mourns Civil Rights Icon Following Her Death At 96 — SkimNews
Get the Culture newsletter
Daily culture — film, music, books, the trends and ideas worth your attention. Free.
- Dolores Huerta died at age 96, leaving behind a legacy as a civil rights icon who co-founded the National Farm Workers Association and popularized the rallying cry 'Sí, se puede'.
- Gregory Nava confirmed the completion of a biopic script on Huerta, a project he will direct alongside his wife Barbara Martinez Jitner, whom Huerta personally entrusted with her life story.
- Huerta had long declined biopic offers but in recent years agreed, believing a film could inspire a new generation of activists and organizers.
- Ivette Rodriguez will produce the upcoming biopic and called Huerta’s trust in the filmmaking team a 'profound responsibility' to be honored with care and respect.
- Barack Obama adopted Huerta’s 'Yes, we can' slogan during his Senate and presidential campaigns, both times with her full support, and awarded her the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2012.
- Dolores Huerta appears in Ellen Gavin’s short film Blood Money, one of her final on-screen roles, which critiques the ICE detention system and highlights collective action.
Why it matters: The greenlighting of Huerta’s biopic—now a posthumous project—shifts it from passion endeavor to legacy stewardship, placing greater weight on how her activism, particularly for farmworkers and women, will be framed for future audiences. With those closest to her now carrying the narrative, the film gains emotional urgency and historical responsibility.
Ask SkimNews
