Authenticity a Big Draw for Filmmakers

Writer-director Paul Greengrass "is very much into reproducing history with as much realism as possible," said Gwen Harmon, spokesperson for the National Civil Rights Museum.

"Because we're a historic site (listed in the National Register of Historic Places), the exterior of the Lorraine Motel is as it was in 1968, which would be very helpful."

That's great news for Memphis, where producers are scouting locations for a major new Greengrass film "Memphis" about Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. They would like to use the Lorraine Motel as the setting for a large portion of the film.

The new movie on Dr. King is being made by Universal Pictures and produced by Scott Rudin, whose credits include two 2011 Oscar nominations, "The Social Network" and "True Grit," and the 2008 Oscar winner "No Country for Old Men." Other films directed by Greengrass include "United 93," "Bloody Sunday," "Green Zone," "The Resurrection," "Bourne Supremacy," and "Bourne Ultimatum."

For Commercial Appeal article, click HERE.