It's been ten years since Amy and Peter Edgar adopted their son, Luce, from war-torn Eritrea, and they thought the worst was behind them. Luce has become an all-star student beloved by his community in Arlington, Virginia. His teacher, Harriet Wilson (Montgomery native Octavia Spencer), believes he is a symbol of black excellence that sets a positive example for his peers. But when he is assigned to write an essay in the voice of a historical twentieth-century figure, Luce turns in a paper that argues that violence is the only way to overcome colonialization. His paper leads Harriet to suspect he plans to commit an act of violence, and what she finds in his locker only reinforces that idea.
As Harriet makes her case, battle lines are drawn. Is Luce the all-star angel everyone believes him to be, or is it all a front? In a town where everyone has their biases and blindspots, can anyone's assessment of him be trusted?