It's not really a trailer, nor is it a movie teaser. It's actually a preview for the upcoming debut of the trailer for Steven Spielberg's Abraham Lincoln biopic that stars Daniel Day-Lewis as the titular 16th president of the United States. That's right, a trailer for the premiere of a trailer. Presumably, that's what we've come to in today's world of the make-or-break Hollywood blockbuster.
Regardless, this Thursday (September 13), will see the world premiere of the trailer for Lincoln where we'll presumably get our first full-on motion glimpse of Day-Lewis in Abraham Lincoln get-up (although we've already gotten a still shot of him in the poster released a few weeks ago) as well as our first listen of how well the actor pulls off the Kentucky twang of ol' Honest Abe. The voice we hear in this brief 40 second preview appears to be that of David Oyelowo as Union Army soldier Ira Clark. That's good news as, although I'm not sure why, I anticipate a deeper, more full intonation from Day-Lewis's depiction.
Following the official trailer's debut, there will be a Live Google Hangout event at 7:00 pm with Steven Spielberg and Joseph Gordon-Levitt. Not everyone will be able to join in on the exclusive event however as it will be limited to participants who have been specially selected among entrants who submit a YouTube channel with an explanation of "who you are, why you are interested in "Lincoln" and what you would like to ask Spielberg and Gordon-Levitt." In other words, they're hoping to cut down on any online jack-assery. While this is a pretty cool way of utilizing social media to pump up the masses for an event, it seems a bit overkill for the debut of a trailer. But we're still in the infancy of how social media can be most effectively used as a promotional tool, so let's cut some slack.
Lincoln will be set at the end of the Civil War and lead up to the last few days of the president's life before his assassination in Washington, D.C. Spielberg is said to be most interested in depicting Lincoln's efforts to abolish slavery, his wartime Emancipation Proclamation, and his focus on pushing the constitutional amendment that abolished slavery.
Lincoln will begin a platform theatrical release on November 9, 2012 and then through to a wider release on the 16th.