September 3, 2016 - 12:11 AMT
1st look at Denzel Washington and Viola Davis in “Fences” adaptation

If you're a movie buff, you couldn't hope for a better Christmas present than a new film starring Denzel Washington and Viola Davis — and that's precisely what you'll be getting on Dec. 25 when Paramount releases Fences, an adaptation of the late, great August Wilson's 1983 Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award winning play, directed by Washington himself, The Hollywood Reporter said.

Set and shot in the historical African-American part of Pittsburgh where Wilson grew up, the film — the first stills of which The Hollywood Reporter is unveiling in this post — was made from a script written by Wilson, who died in 2005, and produced by Washington in partnership with Scott Rudin and Todd Black.

The hit 2010 Broadway production of Fences, which was produced by Rudin and starred Washington and Davis, was awarded Tonys for best revival of a play, best actor in a play (Washington) and best actress in a play (Davis).

Also appearing in the 2010 production and reprising their parts for the big screen, are Russell Hornsby, Mykelti Williamson and Stephen McKinley Henderson. Henderson is a Wilson regular who received a best featured actor in a play Tony nom for the play and, considering the nature of his part as the best friend of Washington's character, seems likely to represent a third acting Oscar contender for the film, in the best supporting actor category.

Photo: The Hollywood Reporter