The time is the late '80s, a crucial period in the history of South Africa. President P.W. Botha is hanging on to power by a thread as the African National Congress (ANC) takes up arms against apartheid and the country tumbles toward insurrection. A British mining concern is convinced that their interests would be better served in a stable South Africa and they quietly dispatch Michael Young, their head of public affairs, to open an unofficial dialogue between the bitter rivals. Assembling a reluctant yet brilliant team to pave the way to reconciliation by confronting obstacles that initially seem insurmountable, Young places his trust in ANC leader Thabo Mbeki and Afrikaner philosophy professor Willie Esterhuyse. It is their empathy that will ultimately serve as the catalyst for change by proving more powerful than the terrorist bombs that threaten to disrupt the peaceful dialogue.
William Hurt
as Professor Will Esterhuyse
Chiwetel Ejiofor
as President Thabo Mbeki
Jonny Lee Miller
as Michael Young
Mark Strong
as Dr. Niel Barnard
Clarke Peters
as Nelson Mandela
John Kani
as Oliver Tambo
Derek Jacobi
as Rudolph Agnew
Timothy West
as P.W. Botha
Matthew Marsh
as F.W. de Klerk
Michael Huff
as Willem de Klerk
Stephen Jennings
as Kobie Coetsee
Patrick Lyster
as Sampie Terreblanche
