Some films announce themselves quietly and still manage to stop you cold. Color Book is one of them.
Netflix dropped the official trailer for the upcoming drama on Tuesday, and the response has been immediate. The film, directed by David Fortune in his feature debut, arrives on the streaming platform June 19 — just in time for Juneteenth.
Color Book follows Lucky, a devoted father played by William Catlett, who is navigating life after the passing of his wife while learning to raise his son Mason as a single parent. Mason, played by Jeremiah Daniels, has Down syndrome. The two set off on a journey through Metro Atlanta to attend their very first baseball game together — and what unfolds is far more than a sports outing.
The film explores grief, parenting, community, and the emotional weight of learning how to move forward after loss. Shot in black and white, Color Book carries an intimacy that feels rare in mainstream streaming releases.
A director’s debut worth watching
Fortune is not a name most casual viewers will recognize yet — but that is about to change. Color Book premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival and landed Fortune on Variety‘s 2025 Directors to Watch list, a distinction that in earlier years has included Taika Waititi, Chloé Zhao, and Luca Guadagnino.
Fortune first developed and workshopped Color Book as part of the Film Independent Amplifier Fellowship funded by Netflix. He then successfully pitched AT&T Untold Stories at the 2023 Tribeca Film Festival, earning a $1 million prize and year-round mentorship to develop it into a feature.
That origin story matters. Color Book was not green-lit through the typical Hollywood pipeline — it was built from the ground up by an independent filmmaker who fought for it. The result is a film that feels genuinely personal rather than produced.
The cast bringing Color Book to life
William Catlett leads the film as Lucky, and early reactions from festival audiences have singled out his performance as the emotional core of the story. Reviewers have praised Catlett’s moving work alongside Jeremiah Daniels, who drives the experience home in a role that demands both vulnerability and presence.
The film also stars Brandee Evans and Terri J. Vaughn, two performers with deep roots in television drama who bring added weight to the supporting cast. Together they round out an ensemble that feels grounded in real community.
Why Color Book feels different
Color Book arrives at a moment when feel-good drama with genuine emotional stakes is hard to come by on streaming. The premise — a grieving father and his son with Down syndrome taking a day trip to a baseball game — could easily tip into sentimentality. Fortune keeps it grounded.
Audience members who caught the film at festival screenings described it as one of the most profound films they had ever seen about parenthood and the boundless love one should have for their children.
What makes Color Book especially compelling is its refusal to over-explain or manipulate. Fortune trusts his audience to sit with the weight of Lucky and Mason’s story without being told how to feel. That kind of restraint is rare, and it is exactly what separates Color Book from the wave of emotionally engineered dramas flooding the streaming space right now. Grief is not neat in this film. It is ongoing, layered, and shared between a father and son who are both figuring it out one day at a time.
The black-and-white visual style is a deliberate choice that strips away distraction and puts the relationship between Lucky and Mason front and center. Every frame in Color Book is built around the two of them.
Color Book hits Netflix June 19
Color Book premieres globally on Netflix on June 19. For viewers looking for something that earns its emotional punches rather than manufacturing them, this one is worth the evening.