Soul Man (film)

Soul Man
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Steve Miner
Written by	Carol Black
Produced by	Steve Tisch
Starring	C. Thomas Howell Rae Dawn Chong Arye Gross James Sikking Leslie Nielsen James Earl Jones
Cinematography	Jeffrey Jur
Edited by	David Finfer
Music by	Tom Scott
Production companies	Balcor Film Investors The Steve Tisch Company
Distributed by	New World Pictures
Release date	October 24, 1986 (1986-10-24)
Running time	104 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$4.5 million[1]
Box office	$35 million

Soul Man is a 1986 American comedy film directed by Steve Miner and written by Carol L. Black. C. Thomas Howell stars as a white male law student who pretends to be black in order to qualify for a scholarship. Its title refers to the song of the same name by Isaac Hayes and David Porter; the original soundtrack includes a version performed by Sam Moore and Lou Reed.

The film garnered controversy, with Howell's makeup drawing comparisons to blackface, which prompted protests against the film upon its release. Despite the controversy and negative reviews from critics, Soul Man was a commercial success, grossing $35 million on a $4.5 million budget.