Here’s another one of those true stories you can’t believe you’ve never heard of, and wonder why it hasn’t been made into a movie long before now. But given the racial tensions of 2016, Hidden Figures may have been providentially preserved for such a time as this.

Unknown to most, a small group of African-American women were integral to the mid-20th Century Space Race between the United States and the Soviet Union. Hidden Figures (trailer and image gallery below) tells their story, and how they helped engineer one of the most important achievements in NASA history. It stars Emmy nominee Taraji P. Henson (TV’s Empire), Academy Award-winner Octavia Spencer (The Help), and R&B artist Janelle Monáe.

It co-stars other Hollywood headliners such as Kevin Costner, Kirsten Dunst, and Jim Parsons, with a music score and songs co-produced by Pharrell Williams (who also serves as a producer on the film).

Directed by Theodore Melfi (of the recent Bill Murray dramedy St. Vincent), Hidden Figures opens nationwide on January 13, 2017, after a brief Oscar-qualifying run in New York and LA at the end of 2016.

Here is the official trailer, and click on any image for larger gallery view.

DF-03283_R3 – Mary Jackson (Janelle Monae, left), Katherine Johnson (Taraji P. Henson) and Dorothy Vaughn (Octavia Spencer) celebrate their stunning achievements in one of the greatest operations in history. Photo Credit: Hopper Stone.

DF-00227_R – Mary Jackson (Janelle Monae) offers some help to NASA mission specialist Karl Zielinski (Olek Krupa). Photo Credit: Hopper Stone.

DF-02289_R2_Comp_V2 – Katherine Johnson (Taraji P. Henson), Dorothy Vaughn (Octavia Spencer) and Mary Jackson (Janelle Monae) are three brilliant African-American women working at NASA, who served as the brains behind one of the greatest operations in history: the launch of astronaut John Glenn into orbit. Photo Credit: Hopper Stone.

DF-05465 – HIDDEN FIGURES is the incredible untold story of brilliant African-American women working at NASA, who served as the brains behind one of the greatest operations in history: the launch of astronaut John Glenn into orbit, a stunning achievement that restored the nation’s confidence, turned around the Space Race, and galvanized the world. The visionary trio crossed all gender and race lines to inspire generations to dream big. Photo Credit: Hopper Stone.