Justin Martin had never heard of Ernie Davis — until he was tapped to play the football great in "The Express," starring Dennis Quaid and Rob Brown and opening in theaters on Friday.
Now Martin — the 14-year-old Acworth resident who drew critical praise for his Travis Younger in Atlanta director Kenny Leon's TV version of "A Raisin in the Sun" — calls the first African-American Heisman Trophy winner "an underrated African-American role model." In "The Express," Martin portrays Davis as a young man.
"I think this movie will open the light to a lot of people's inspiration," Martin said. "A lot of us take a lot of things for granted. ... He dealt with all the problems that went along with African-Americans at that time and ... he still persevered."
Martin's film career is getting a lot of attention these days. In "The Soloist" — opening Nov. 21 and starring Jamie Foxx and Robert Downey Jr. — he plays schizophrenic cello prodigy Nathaniel Ayers as a youngster. He also has a featured role in Disney's "High School Musical 3: Senior Year," opening Oct. 24.
For "The Express," Martin had to learn to imitate Davis' speech impediment.
"I was taught how to stutter by a woman who taught stutterers how not to stutter," said the former munchkin from a True Colors Theatre production of "The Wiz." "It was weird."
Coming Oct. 24 in Movies & More: Martin talks about "High School Musical 3."
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