ED BURNS (CO-CREATOR): I knew a guy, his father was a preacher and he was very articulate. He got involved with a spin-off of the Panthers and he started robbing federal guards to get their equipment, which is not the brightest thing in the world. He got caught, but when I was talking to him, he was very focused, revolutionary-type ideas, very firm, and I thought, Maybe you can take that attitude, that strength, and take the discipline of one of [Louis] Farrakhan’s people and mold them into this guy and then, find an actor who could play that part. And we did.
