Phyllis Nagy’sCall Janeis heading to clinics across the U.S. as part of a new partnership with national and local abortion care providers. PerThe Hollywood Reporterthese providers — the most notable including Planned Parenthood and the Abortion Care Network — will host special screenings of the film and feature star-studded PSAs and other content all in the name of spreading more information about abortion and encouraging more women to share their stories.
Planned Parenthood and the Abortion Care Network’s KeepOurClinics.org campaign have been involved withCall Janefrom the get-go, ensuring the realities of a pre-Roe v. Wade world and the roadblocks to abortion access were properly conveyed in Nagy’s film. With the overturning of the landmark legislation, 18 states have since instituted abortion bans of some sort, once again leaving many women facing massive barriers to reproductive health. The screenings will be held at a number of the organization’s clinics around the country as a way of highlighting those roadblocks and as a dedication to the workers at the clinics who have faced a swell of demand due to out-of-state patients seeking abortion access.
Aside from the screenings, the PSAs will feature the film’s two big stars,Elizabeth BanksandSigourney Weaver, driving home the importance of protecting abortion access in the U.S. TheCall Janeteam is also planning a number of other avenues to contribute to the cause, including fundraisers, theater buy-outs, and other original content that shines a light on smaller, local organizations. One such partnership the team has also forged is with We Testify, a group representing women who’ve previously had abortions.
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The release ofCall Janewill also be used to drum up support for Reproductive Freedom for All’s (RFFA) Proposal 3 which would protect the existing right to abortion in Michigan. REFA communication directorDarci McConnellthanked Banks and Weaver for lending their voices to the fight to uphold those rights, saying in a statement:
We’re grateful for Elizabeth and Sigourney encouraging Michiganders to vote YES on Proposal 3. It’s been nearly five decades since women have had to fight for reproductive health care. But with a 1931 law looming that bans nearly all abortions, we’re fighting now to restore the rights in Michigan we lost when Roe was overturned.
Call Janetells an all-too-real, 60s-set centered on Joy (Elizabeth Banks), a suburban wife and mother forced to turn to the real-life underground Chicago abortion network the Jane Collective in an effort to save her life after her pregnancy jeopardizes her survival. Enamored with the organization, she joined the fight to help more women in her situation during a time before Roe v. Wade. An especially timely film considering the recent Supreme Court decision to overturn Roe, once again jeopardizing abortion rights, it’s earned decent marks from critics for its striking depiction of abortion rights as human rights. Collider’s ownMaggie Boccellareviewed the film after its Sundance 2022 premiere, praising the first two acts of the film as “engaging and rather nerve-wracking,” even if the ending lacked some punch.
The film boasts a starry cast with Banks and Weaver joined by,Chris Messina,Kate Mara,Wunmi Mosaku,Cory Michael Smith,Grace Edwards, andJohn Magaro. Academy Award nominee Nagy directed from a script byHayley SchoreandRoshan Sethi. It’s not the only film calling for action as abortion access continues to decline in the U.S. Coincidentally, the film premiered at Sundance alongsideThe Janes, a documentary taking an in-depth look at the Jane Collective. It’s all in an effort to highlight the very real, and very terrifying, future that lies ahead if abortion rights continue to be stripped away.
Call Janeis screening in theaters starting today, October 28. Check out the trailer below.
