David Oyelowo – Martin Luther King Tom Wilkinson – president Lyndon B. Johnson Tim Roth – Guvernør George Wallace Common – James Bevel Carmen Ejogo – Coretta Scott King som var gift med Martin Luther King. Lorraine Toussaint – Amelia Boynton Robinson Oprah Winfrey – Annie Lee Cooper Cuba Gooding, Jr. – Fred Gray Niecy Nash – Richie Jean Jackson. Colman Domingo – Ralph Abernathy Giovanni Ribisi – Lee C. White Alessandro Nivola – John Doar Keith Stanfield – Jimmie Lee Jackson Andre Holland – Andrew Young Tessa Thompson – Diane Nash Wendell Pierce – Hosea Williams Omar Dorsey – James Orange Ledisi – Mahalia Jackson Trai Byers – James Forman Stephan James – John Lewis Kent Faulcon – Sullivan Jackson. John Lavelle – Roy Reed. Jeremy Strong – James Reeb Dylan Baker – J. Edgar Hoover. Direktør for FBI Nigel Thatch – Malcolm X Charity Jordan – Viola Lee Jackson Haviland Stillwell – Johnsons sekretær. Tara Ochs – Viola Liuzzo Stan Houston som Sheriff Jim Clark Martin Sheen som Frank Minis Johnson.