Some of the cast and team behind the new Angel Studios film DRUMMER BOY walked the carpet on Wednesday night, November 4, for the world premiere in Nashville, Tennessee. Co-directors Joel David Smallbone and Ben Smallbone, along with producer Luke Smallbone, posed for photos with cast members Melora Hardin, Charles Esten, Ioan Gruffudd, Beth Easdown, and India Brown.
In this epic musical, two brothers are driven onto opposite sides of the American Revolutionary War. With love, loyalty, and family caught in the crossfire, each must decide who he will become, as the fight for freedom turns into a deeply personal battle for forgiveness.
Seasoned filmmaker Ben Smallbone (“Priceless,” “Homestead”) collaborates with his brother Joel David Smallbone, best known as one half of Grammy-winning Christian pop duo For King + Country, to direct this new feature film for Angel Studios. The film’s tagline is “Forgiveness is Revolutionary.”
The idea for the song dates back to 2012, when For King + Country were choosing songs for their Christmas tour. Since Luke is an avid drummer, they thought, “We love drums, so if we’re going to do a Christmas tour, we should probably at least consider doing ‘The Little Drummer Boy.’”
They came out of rehearsal with a song that eventually outgrew the tour it was arranged for. In 2019, I was privileged to see the live performance of “Little Drummer Boy” at the recording of the CMA Christmas in Nashville. I was blown away, as was the rest of America when it aired on December 3rd.
Thoughts about film production came in 2017. Somewhere in the family, the idea of making a movie came up. Luke Smallbone shared, “I forget if it was from Ben, Dad, or Joel. I don’t know who it was, but there was this idea of what if we were to make a movie around two brothers that ended up on the opposite side of war.”
“That took us on this kind of wild goose chase of developing this movie,” he stated.
The historical fiction plotline began to develop in 2018, when the brothers were reminded that drums were used in the Revolutionary War. Joel Smallbone explained, “In these wars, hundreds of years ago, they would communicate through drum signals: retreat, to charge, to spur each other on. We heard these stories and were fascinated by brothers in both the Civil and the Revolutionary War ending up on opposite sides of the battlefield in these pivotal moments.” They also imagined a Christmas Day ceasefire.
Joel continued, “We began with the last scene of the film, which is these brothers on opposite sides of the battlefield, and then we sort of pulled the thread back from there into the plot.”
When I was asked to cover The Drummer Boy premiere, initially, I didn’t realize it was a musical. Sometimes in movie musicals, I find the music disruptive to the plot—but not so in The Drummer Boy. The well-crafted songs blend in perfectly with the plotline. Often, you don’t even realize that the actors are singing. While a few classic Christmas songs are embedded in the movie, the original music is splendid, and the soundtrack stands on its own. The songs “Heart of a Lion” and “Who I Hope To Be” are prime examples.
The premiere took place at Belmont’s Fisher Center in Nashville, a nice personal touch since the Smallbone brothers were raised in Music City. Hosting the film’s premiere in the heart of America’s music scene was something truly special for the film’s entire team.
It was the first time for actors India Brown (Emmaline), Beth Easdown (Lady Elizabeth Balfour), and Ioan Gruffudd to visit Nashville, and they were especially excited to be at the premiere. Suffolk-born British actress Beth Easdown is a huge country music fan. “I absolutely love it,” she stated.
It was also the first time for Welsh-born, highly credited actor Ioan Gruffudd (Fantastic Four, King Author, Black Hawk Down). He told me, “This is my first time in Nashville, and I’m just very impressed. I mean, this building we’re in this evening is absolutely stunning, and it wasn’t supposed to be the first choice for this premiere tonight (the water main at the Opry broke), so it’s clear this city is full of tradition and beauty. [The Fisher Center] looks like something out of a set.”
Many in attendance were dressed in full Revolutionary War regalia, which made the event even more special.
Another seasoned actress, Melora Hardin, who visited Nashville to film the Hannah Montana movie, was excited to work on a film with the Smallbone brothers.
She shared, “We had so much fun. I really loved Joel and Luke, who were absolutely dreamy. And Ben Smallbone, the co-director, they were such lovely people. We had a wonderful time.”
Beth Easdown agreed, “They made it feel like such a warm, welcoming set. It really had such a family vibe, which made it such a safe and brilliant place to work.”
The film’s emotional punch comes largely from the authenticity of the brothers’ relationship, Ben believes. With Ben and Joel directing together, Luke producing, Joel portraying the eldest Clem brother, and various other family members involved along the way, everything the film says about loyalty, resentment, and forgiveness was experienced in real life at the same time, resulting in palpable on-screen believability.
Joel stated, “I think the bond of brothers, and the friction between them, is something we were able to explore on-screen with a truthfulness from our relationships off-screen that brought additional meaning to the idea of reconciliation.”
He added, “The film has already been a gift to our family, and we look forward with great anticipation to how it may bless audiences, as well.”
Angel Studios was key to producing the film. The screenplay was written by Richard L. Ramsey and is Angel’s first live-action theatrical musical. It brought it to the big screen with an exceptional team of filmmakers and creative partners.
Later, the film will air on the Angel network, but for now, The Drummer Boy should be seen on the biggest movie screen you can find. Filmed mostly in Ireland, the scenery is magnificent. That, along with the outstanding soundtrack and stellar acting, makes this film about redemption and forgiveness a perfect family outing this holiday season. (Side note: The PG-13 rating comes from the battle scenes where people are wounded and killed. No foul language or off-color content would keep most families from watching it.)
Click here for the Drummer Boy movie times and ticket information. Click here to access the digital soundtrack and/or to order CDs and Vinyl of the Drummer Boy music.
Click here to see exclusive pictures of the premiere in Nashville.
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Bethany Bowman is a freelance entertainment writer. Follow her on her blog, Instagram, and TikTok.
Drummer Boy Premiere Photo Gallery
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