‘Star Wars: Skeleton Crew’ Star Ravi Cabot-Conyers Joins ‘Beneath the Grass’ (EXCLUSIVE)

After nabbing a lead role in Star Wars: Skeleton Crew, Ravi Cabot-Conyers has joined the cast of Beneath the Grass, a drama about the criminal justice system and marijuana incarceration rates.

Cabot-Conyers (#BlackAF, Encanto) joins Ma Maestro, Quincy Isaiah and Jeff Kober in the film, which begins production next month in New Jersey, directed by Will Bermudez and Sam Friedman. Paradigm is representing worldwide sales for the title, which launched at the Cannes Film Festival.

Beneath the Grass is set in 2008 and explores both the economic recession and the inequities of incarceration rates of the era. The film follows Leo, an inquisitive and sensitive Latino boy (Cabot-Conyers) who puts his single mothers (Maestro) illegal marijuana business at risk when he befriends the new neighbors, a young white boy and his police officer grandfather (Kober).

The films official synopsis explains that Leo finds himself yearning for human connection while struggling with the very real reality of racial disparity both in and out of the criminal justice system, where the ramifications are of a particular threat to his mother and her trusted friend (Isaiah).

According to production research, in 2008, Latino people were four times more likely to be arrested for marijuana possession than white people, while Black people were seven times more likely. Despite marijuana legalization in several states in the years since, the research explains, arrest rates have risen with racial disparities still prevalent.

Beneath the Grass marks the directorial debuts of Bermudez and Friedman. The duo wrote the screenplay, with a story by Bermudez, Friedman and producers Conscious Contact Entertainments David Goldblum and Exit 14s Adam Edery. Executive producers include Paul Blavin and Amy Blavin, as well as Exit 14s Sam Silverstein and Jeremy Paczos.

Cabot-Conyers is best known for his work on Netflixs #BlackAF, where he played Kam, the second eldest son of Kenya and Joya Barris (Kenya Barris and Rashida Jones); and as the voice of Antonio Madrigal in Disneys Oscar-winning animated film Encanto.

At Star Wars Celebration last month, Cabot-Conyers was revealed as one of the stars of Star Wars: Skeleton Crew, alongside Jude Law, Kyriana Kratter and Robert Timothy Smith. There, Star Wars fans got a first look at the Lucasfilm series, which has been described as a galactic version of classic Amblin coming-of-age adventure films of the 80s and will debut on Disney+

The young talents TV and film credits also include The Resident, Tell Me a Story, Justine and The Artist Wife, and he can be heard on Apple TV+ series Get Rolling with Otis.

Cabot-Conyers is repped by Paradigm, Buchwald Animation VO, Edge Entertainment Management, Jill Fritzo PR and Lighter, Grossman, Nichols, Adler, Feldman and Clark.