The true story of Sarah Rector, an African American girl from early 1900s Oklahoma who became one of the nation’s first black female millionaires at just 11 years old, is hitting the big screen this November.
Set in Oklahoma Indian Territory, “Sarah’s Oil” follows Rector, a young girl who suspected there was oil beneath the barren land she was allotted. When her hunch proved correct, she faced a new challenge — protecting her fortune from speculators, con artists and power brokers eager to exploit her youth and inexperience.
The film is from Amazon MGM Studios and Wonder Project. It stars Naya Desir-Johnson as Sarah in her first lead role, supported by an ensemble that includes Zachary Levi, Sonequa Martin-Green, Garret Dillahunt, Mel Rodriguez, Kenric Green, Bridget Regan, Adyan Copes and Stelio Savante.
The film is directed by Cyrus Nowrasteh (“Infidel”) and produced by Andrew Erwin (“I Can Only Imagine,” “Unsung Hero,” “The Best Christmas Pageant Ever”), Jon Erwin (“House of David,” “Jesus Revolution,” “White Bird “), Zachary Levi, Kevin Downes (“The Jesus Music,” “The Unbreakable Boy,” “Ordinary Angels”), Daryl Lefever (“Woodlawn,” “House of David”), John Shepherd (“The Drop Box”), and Derrick Williams (“Miracles from Heaven,” “Heaven Is for Real”).
“Sarah’s journey is one of remarkable resilience,” said Downes. “Sarah’s Oil does exactly what we aim to do — tell stories that ignite hope.”
The drama is directed by Cyrus Nowrasteh, who co-wrote the screenplay with Betsy Giffen Nowrasteh. It is inspired by Tonya Bolden’s book Searching for Sarah Rector: The Richest Black Girl in America.
The PG-rated film contains thematic content, some violence, language including racial slurs, a suggestive reference and brief smoking. Originally set for a Christmas Day debut, the release date has been bumped up to Nov. 7, 2025.
Watch the trailer for “Sarah’s Oil”
Other films coming from Wonder Project include “Young Washington,” a historical drama that explores the early years of America’s first president; “The Breadwinner,” a film in partnership with TriStar Pictures starring comedian Nate Bargatze; “It’s Not Like That,” a drama series with Amazon MGM Studios featuring Scott Foley and Erinn Hayes; and “Flyer,” a feature in development about the Wright brothers.
The studio recently announced that it will launch a premium subscription offering on Prime Video this fall. Dallas Jenkins, the creator “The Chosen,” is a large shareholder in the company and will serve as a special advisor, also executive producing some of its content, per Deadline.
“The dream of The WONDER Project is to create a trusted brand that serves the faith and values audience globally with movies and TV shows they didn’t know were possible,” said Erwin. “We will achieve this by giving the creatives dedicated to this audience (including myself) a level of freedom and resources they’ve never had before. This level of talent combined with the power of the stories we are developing is really inspiring! I can’t wait for the audience to experience the things we are working on.”
