Entertainment
Producer Will Packer Stumps to Get Out the Vote and Launch a Private HBCU Fundraising Campaign
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Published 10/31/2026 12:11:53 PM
Producer Will Packer Works to Get Out the Vote, Fundraise for HBCUs
Producer Will Packer has never been shy about sharing his opinion, even as he’s become a public figure. In a season when so many of Hollywood’s boldface names have kept a low profile when it comes to politics, Packer has taken to stages in recent weeks to advocate for causes and candidates that he believes in.
On Oct. 23, Packer led a rally at his alma mater, Florida A&M University in Tallahassee, where he urged students to flex their power by voting in Tuesday’s midterm elections. He appeared with Angie Nixon and David Jolly, Democratic candidates in Florida’s election for U.S. and governor, respectively. He told the crowd that decades of Republican control in the Sunshine State have led to significant underfunding of Florida A&M (also known as FAMU), and that it is time for change.
At the event, Packer revealed that he is launching a private fundraising effort for FAMU, which is part of Florida’s state university system. It is one of 107 schools in the U.S. that are designated Historically Black Colleges and Universities. Packer aims to build a private fundraising model for FAMU that he intends to extend to other HBCUs down the road.
Packer has built his public profile as a prolific supplier of distinctive movies and TV shows, from “Girls Trip” and “Straight Outta Compton” to the Peacock limited series “Fight Night” and the 2022 Academy Awards telecast. With the extraordinary events of the past two years — from the Trump administration’s assault on DEI programs to Florida’s efforts to denude the history of slavery from high school curriculums — Packer felt strongly motivated to speak out in support of candidates including Nixon and Jolly as well as Keisha Lance Bottoms, a Democrat who is running for governor of Georgia.
“I’m in a unique position because I work in Hollywood. I’m not in front of the camera, but I still have a profile, certainly with African American audiences who have been very supportive of my content,” Packer tells Variety. “I have always said that my opinion is not any more important than anybody else’s, but it’s certainly not any less important.”
Yes, taking strong position at a time of bitter political polarization in the U.S. is risky for any public figure. Packer feels a responsibility to speak out against what he sees as grave threats to the future of the nation and the democratic system. Packer echoes the sentiments of other commentators and pollsters who say a strong turnout among Black voters in key states such as Florida, Georgia and Texas could tip the scales for Democrats in those states.
“Turnout is the key to electoral success, and turnout is about energy and excitement. Black voters have been the key to the Democrats’ success because of our engaged turnout. When we are excited, engaged, and come out as a community and let our voices be heard, it matters,” Packer says. “So, for me, as somebody that’s got a very strong relationship with that community, I feel like I would be remiss if I wasn’t at least saying to people, ‘Let me tell you what I’m going to do. Let me tell you how I see this.’ ”
From Packer’s perspective, a large percentage of Black voters feel disenfranchised by the events of the past two years. He’s trying to remind them that the most powerful step they can take to initiate change is to fill out a ballot by Nov. 3.
“I see there’s an opportunity in places like the governorship in Georgia, the governorship in Florida, the Senate race in both states that I’m very close to and states where I know that Black voter turnout is absolutely going to matter,” Packer says. “I feel that it is incumbent upon me as somebody is never shy about saying, ‘Hey, you know what? This is what’s important in the movie industry. I think people should come out and support this type of film because this will say that to the industry that this is we should use our economic power.’ So why would I stop there, especially when it’s something that is so important? I think we’re in an existential moment in terms of our democracy and which direction we’re going to go.”
Packer’s FAMU rally was carried live on “Roland Martin Unfiltered,” the daily news and commentary program that airs on Martin’s Black Star Network and YouTube. “Roland Martin Unfiltered” has been on the road for the past two weeks, going deep into battleground states to cover local rallies and events and hosting lengthy discussions with local candidates well down the ballot.
Packer knows that there is considerable risk in being vocal about politics. He likens it to the dynamic that he encountered while trying to recruit a host for the 2022 Oscar telecast.
“I have a lot of friends across the industry who say that speaking out makes them very nervous because it’s so polarized. I was having a conversation with a very high-profile rapper-slash-actor. And this person said to me that there is literally no win to coming out and saying anything politically. You’re always going to piss off half the people, and especially right now, half the people are going to hate you if you say anything political at all. And that was this person’s very, very strong belief,” Packer says.
“It reminds me of when I was when I was having conversation with people about hosting the Oscars, and people said to me, ‘Why would I do this? I can only lose.’ So I hear the same thing about politics. But I feel like, we’re on this earth for however long God allows us to be. What are you doing with yourself and your human voice and your mission? If you’re not out there influencing people and doing things that you can feel proud of and sleep well at night, then have you really given it your all? Have you really made the most impactful legacy that you have on this earth? That’s why I got to where I am today,” he says.
Packer broke the news of his plan to launch the Rattler Freedom Fund (a nod to FAMU’s rattlesnake mascot) during the Oct. 23 rally. Since then, he’s received calls from other HBCUs looking to be involved. FAMU in recent years has been buffeted by “some very hard core MAGA philosophy” that has penetrated the Florida statehouse, he says.
“Florida A&M, like many HBCUs, is a public university, and so it is subject to the political leanings of whoever is in charge and in power. What we saw recently was something that many of us in the HBCU community thought could never happen, which is basically a MAGA takeover of a very, very prominent institution,” Packer says. “What we need to have is an independent financing source. This is not about Democrats versus Republicans. It is about HBCUs and saying we need to be able to fund our own purposes and aims and goals, independent of whoever may be in the governor’s house and whoever may control the state legislature. When you are completely dependent on resources and financing from a government, then you are subject to the whims of that government and we’re seeing that play out in real time.”
The fate of FAMU is deeply personal to Packer, who graduated magna cum laude in 1996 with a degree in electrical engineering. His career path was destined to take him to work the awards circuit more than circuit boards. But he credits the boost that he got from attending FAMU as providing the educational and cultural foundation that allowed him to take the radical detour to become a successful movie and TV producer.
“If it was not for my HBCU experience, I wouldn’t be where I am. It’s where I found my voice. It’s where I really found the foundation for me being a creative producer that I am,” Packer says. “The Rattler Freedom Fund is a completely nonpartisan, independent organization to finance the aims and missions and students at our schools, so that we’re not so reliant on government financing. This is something that we have to do in order to maintain these great, great institutions, who have who have helped create some of the greatest Black leaders and Black minds across so many fields. We have to create a system for us to be self-supporting and self-sustaining.”
(Pictured: Producer Will Packer, center, at the Oct. 23 Florida A&M University rally, flanked by Gwen Graham, candidate for Florida Lt. Gov.; Annette Taddeo, candidate for Florida chief financial officer; Angie Nixon, Florida candidate for U.S. Senate; and David Jolly, Florida candidate for governor.)
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Mexico’s beloved Guillermo del Toro descended on the 24thMorelia Film Festival like the rockstar he is, greeted by hordes of shrieking fans that impressed even the most jaded in the crowd.
In town to present the much-anticipated 3D Re-Release of “Pan’s Labyrinth,” he was everywhere all at once, holding a masterclass where tickets were as elusive as a seat at Cannes that went on for nearly three hours and a free-wheeling press conference that extended past its time limit.
It was his third time at the fest, 20 years after his multi-Oscar winning “Pan’s Labyrinth’ first played there and years later with his 2018 best picture Academy Award winner “The Shape of Water.”
Before the presser kicked off, Del Toro, an Honorary Doctorate recipient from the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), received the Filmoteca UNAM Medal, an honor also bestowed on Alfonso Cuarón, in town to support his son Jonas Cuarón’s opening night film, “Campeón Gabacho,” which he produced.
Alongside Del Toro were festival director Daniela Michel, “Pan’s Labyrinth” producer Bertha Navarro, his then young lead Ivana Baquero and DP Guillermo Navarro, who took home the cinematography Oscar for his stunning work on the anti-fascist fable.
Reflecting on a question posed midway through the press conference about what has stayed the same and what has changed over the 20 years since “Pan’s Labyrinth,” del Toro responded with tears.
“The state of our species and society today goes beyond anything we could have imagined back then. But I recognize the same sadness and despair. It pains me deeply to see one, two, or three generations fail the next. We’re handing down a world in ruins, morally, socially and spiritually fractured, with the very fabric that once allowed us to tell fables and parables falling apart.”
Asked whether he knew beforehand if “Pan’s Labyrinth” would be well received, Del Toro recounted how his collaborations with both Navarros sustained him through all the challenges they faced.
“We embarked on an adventure that was financially horrifying but cinematically beautiful,” he said.
“You never know how a film will be received. We only found out when we screened it for the first time at Cannes. We got that famous standing ovation that lasted more than 22 minutes, and from that moment on, everything changed. It changed our lives.”
“I think ‘Pan’s Labyrinth’ marked a before and after for me. In terms of creative freedom, possibilities and everything else, I’m where I am today because of that film. But none of it would have been possible without the faith of my immediate family, Bertha and Guillermo.”
Said DP Navarro: “Guillermo and I share the belief that cinematic language is storytelling through images that convey emotion and narrative. ‘Pan’s Labyrinth’ is the ultimate expression of that. The camera is constantly searching, discovering and communicating.”
“It was also an incredibly difficult shoot. We had a limited budget, had to find unconventional solutions and took risks that could easily have failed. But we gambled and we won. Without a doubt, it’s my best film, and I hold that experience close to my heart. I hope new generations will continue to discover and appreciate it. And now, 20 years later, it returns. Olé!”
Producer Navarro, who also backed Del Toro’s career-launching feature debut “Cronos” and his much-lauded “The Devil’s Backbone,” said: “When he gave me the screenplay for ‘Cronos,’ I was absolutely fascinated. Talent shines, and you have to know how to recognize that light. That’s what I saw in Guillermo.”
“It’s been an incredible privilege to have made those three great films with Guillermo. I’ve produced many films throughout my life, but those three hold a much deeper significance for me. They changed my life.”
Baquero concurred: “’Pan’s Labyrinth’ undoubtedly opened doors for me, both into the genre and in my career. We’ve talked this afternoon about how much the film changed our lives, professionally and personally. For me, acting went from being a hobby – I had worked before ‘Pan’s Labyrinth’ – to becoming my profession. Without that film, I might not be here today. It unquestionably marked a turning point in my career.”
Reflecting on its impact on young audiences. Del Toro noted: “There’s an urgency and a fragility and ferocity that coexist in ‘Pan’s Labyrinth.’ And somehow, I think it’s an urgent moment to speak, for the film to speak to a new audience.”
Local politics also crept into the conference, with a journalist asking him what he would say to the young people protesting in his hometown of Guadalajara over its current issues of contaminated water, repression and the alleged kidnapping of protesters on Oct. 11.
He responded:“This morning at my masterclass, I gave young people the floor to speak about these issues. It’s terrifying that something so fundamental should have to be fought for instead of being resolved through basic humanity and responsible leadership.”
“I said it clearly: “Their voices must be heard, and I stand with them 100%. It’s unacceptable that this remains unresolved or that anyone would try to silence them. Speaking out, protesting, and demanding a solution are fundamental rights – anytime, anywhere.”
The Morelia Film Festival began on Oct. 16 and wraps Oct. 25.
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The Japan IP Market will be back in Cannes next May for a second straight year. The Cannes Film Market and TIFFCOM, the content market of the Tokyo International Film Festival, are again teaming up on the event, and the 2027 edition will run May 14-15.
The return was revealed at TIFFCOM in Tokyo, during a conference on how Japan can forge new international partnerships after its stint as Country of Honor in Cannes. Alexandra Zakharchenko, head of industry programs at the Cannes Film Market, was among the panelists.
“The success of Japan, Country of Honor showed what can happen when a focused national presence creates lasting opportunities for the industry. The Japan IP Market is one of those outcomes: a collaboration that extends beyond a single edition and gives Japanese intellectual properties greater access to international partners,” said Guillaume Esmiol, executive director of the Cannes Film Market. “I’m delighted that we are continuing this work with TIFFCOM to create more opportunities for rights holders to connect with international producers and partners, develop new adaptations and bring their stories to global audiences.”
The Japan IP Market first ran in May 2026, one of the initiatives tied to Japan’s turn as Country of Honor at the Cannes Film Market. It put Japanese rights holders in the same room as industry professionals from abroad via pitches, one-on-one meetings and industry discussions. Kadokawa, Shochiku and Toei Company were among the companies taking part. The speaker lineup included Fujimura Tetsu, executive producer of “One Piece” and founder and CEO of Filosophia, Inc.
“The Japan IP Market is about creating the right conditions for business opportunities between Japanese rights holders and international companies,” said Zakharchenko. “By bringing them together in Cannes, we can help turn growing interest in Japanese content into concrete adaptation deals and acquisitions, while fostering new collaboration opportunities.”
Shiina Yasushi, executive adviser at UNIJAPAN and CEO of TIFFCOM, said the partnership with the Cannes market plays an important role for Japan’s audiovisual industry. He described the Cannes market as the biggest market attached to any film festival in the world. “Meeting the international professionals who gather there and creating together with them is the key to nurturing Japanese IP into global content,” he said.
Ikeda Kaori, managing director of TIFFCOM, said the first edition had shown how keen producers and partners worldwide are on Japanese IP. “Through the continued partnership linking Cannes in May with the Tokyo IP Market in October, we are pleased to offer more professionals the opportunity to meet Japanese rights holders directly and discover the rich diversity of Japanese IP,” she said.
The 2027 roster of companies and the rest of the program will be unveiled in the months ahead.
