Netflix has released the Come Sunday trailer. Based on a true story reported on by This American Life, Joshua Marston’s film follows Bishop Carlton Pearson (Chiwetel Ejiofor), a popular religious figure in Tulsa, Oklahoma who begins to lose his flock when he starts preaching about universal salvation.

I caught the film at Sundance earlier this year, and while Ejiofor is quite good and the ideas contained in the movie are interesting, the storytelling is fairly dry. Here’s what Adam Chitwood said in his review:

This is certainly an interesting story, and indeed Marcus Hinchy’s script for Come Sunday is based on an episode of This American Life, but throughout the film it’s hard not to think the story makes a better episode of that program than a feature film. Marston directs the film with care, and the performances by Ejiofor and standout Lakeith Stanfield—as Pearson’s closeted choir leader—are pretty outstanding, but as the film moves along it starts to run out of steam. Things just kind of happen, and while some may get more mileage out of Pearson’s crisis of faith than others, once he makes his proclamation we’re left with what’s essentially a two-act denouement.

 

The film is, however, refreshingly un-hagiographic, as it does dig a bit into Pearson’s pride and arrogance that may have led some to question his testimony. But it feels as though if the script had focused on this aspect of Pearson’s character a bit more, we might have gotten something more dynamic and complex. As is, while the film doesn’t portray Pearson as a saint, it portrays him as a fairly uncomplicated character, all things considered.

Check out the Come Sunday trailer below. The film hits Netflix on April 13th and also stars Jason Segel, Condola Rashad, Danny Glover, and Martin Sheen.

Here’s the official synopsis for Come Sunday:

From director Joshua Marston, Come Sunday stars Academy Award-nominee Chiwetel Ejiofor, Lakeith Stanfield, Jason Segel, Condola Rashad, and Martin Sheen. It's the moving story of Bishop Carlton Pearson's personal journey from leading a religious congregation to being labeled a heretic.