One Spoon of Chocolate is a 2025 American action thriller drama film written, produced and directed by RZA. It stars Shameik Moore, Paris Jackson, RJ Cyler, Harry Goodwins, Johnell Young, Michael Harney, Rockmond Dunbar, E'myri Crutchfield, Blair Underwood, Jason Isbell, Isaiah Hill (in his feature film debut), James Lee Thomas, and Jason Vendryes.
The film premiered at the 2025 Tribeca Festival on June 8, 2025 and was released in the United States on May 1, 2026.
Contents
Plot
Randy "Unique" Joneson is a veteran who is seeking a quiet life in his hometown of Karenville, Ohio after being released from prison in New York. He moves in with his cousin, Ramsee, to claim his half of the family home. However, Karenville is a sundown town that is controlled by a corrupt and racist Sheriff McLeoud. McLeoud is operating an organ harvesting scheme targeting black men. Sheriff McLeoud's son, Jimmy, leads a gang who roam the streets at night with baseball bats, hunting lone black men. The scheme comes to light with the disappearance of Unique's other cousin, Lonnie, a local star athlete, whose organs are harvested by the town doctor.
Trying to protect his family, Unique attempts to maintain a low profile. He starts to form a relationship with Darla, a friend of Ramsee's girlfriend. Darla encourages Unique to live a peaceful life. However, Unique's situation changes when the gang targets and abducts Ramsee. Due to the Sheriff's involvement, Unique does not report the crime.
Back in New York, Unique's parole officer, Officer Beem, becomes concerned after Sheriff McLeoud's reports that Unique has not checked in. During the conversation, Beem overhears communication from the Sheriff that reveals the organ harvesting scheme. Fearing for Unique, Beem travels to Ohio.
Utilizing his military training, Unique begins to fight back against the gang. Unique infiltrates Jimmy's clubhouse and kills each member of the gang until only Jimmy remains. During the confrontation, the Sheriff's office, Officer Beem, and other townspeople gather outside, along with a news reporter.
Unique tricks Jimmy into confessing to the murders, supremacist ideology, and organ theft scheme over an intercom broadcasting to everyone outside before he executes Jimmy, ending McLeoud's lineage.
Cast
Shameik Moore as Randy "Unique" Joneson
RJ Cyler as Ramsee Joneson
Harry Goodwins as Jimmy McLeoud
Paris Jackson as Darla
Blair Underwood as Ronald Beem
Johnell Young as Dap
Michael Harney as Sheriff McLeoud
Rockmond Dunbar as Mr. Lindsey
E'myri Crutchfield as Aretha
James Lee Thomas as Jesse McLeoud
Michael Bekemeier as Paulie
Brandon Bonilla as Mickey
Jason Vendryes as Deputy Susky
Jason Isbell as Business Man
Isaiah Hill as Lonnie Joneson
Production
In October 2012, in an interview with The New York Times, RZA revealed that he was working on his next feature film, titled One Spoon of Chocolate, which was described as a period piece set between the 1960s and 1970s.
In late April 2024, Shameik Moore, Paris Jackson, RJ Cyler, Harry Goodwins, Johnell Young, Michael Harney, Rockmond Dunbar, E'myri Crutchfield, and Blair Underwood joined the cast of the film. In May, Jason Isbell, Isaiah Hill, and James Lee Thomas joined the cast in an undisclosed role.
Filming
Principal photography began in April 2024, in Atlanta, and wrapped in July.
Release
One Spoon of Chocolate premiered at the Tribeca Festival on June 8, 2025. In March 2026, it was announced that RZA had launched a distribution label named 36 Cinema Distribution, with One Spoon of Chocolate being its maiden release in association with Variance Films; Quentin Tarantino also boarded the film as a presenter. The film was theatrically released in the United States on May 1, 2026, with select engagements presented on 35mm.
Reception
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 42% of 31 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 5.1/10. Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 38 out of 100, based on 5 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable" reviews.