Rodney King riots are the backdrop for one of Ray Liotta’s final films in 1992 trailer

An actor can’t control what may become his last performance. One of the final films of the late Ray Liotta happens to be 1992, a boilerplate crime thriller set against the backdrop of the riots that took place in Los Angeles that year. On the one hand, it seems rather in poor taste to turn this real-life uprising, which sparked when a jury acquitted police officers for the use of excessive force in the beating of Rodney King, into an off-brand Purge movie. On the other hand, there were stories of looting and violence that came out of the six-day riots, so the story is at least a little bit rooted in reality. Whether writer/director Ariel Vromen and his co-writer Sascha Penn pull it off respectfully remains to be seen when the film premieres in theaters on August 30.

Per a synopsis from Lionsgate, “In 1992, Mercer (Tyrese Gibson) is desperately trying to rebuild his life and his relationship with his son (Christopher A’mmanuel) amidst the turbulent 1992 LA uprising following the Rodney King verdict. Across town, another father and son (Ray Liotta and Scott Eastwood) put their own strained relationship to the test as they plot a dangerous heist to steal catalytic converters, which contain valuable platinum, from the factory where Mercer works. As tensions rise in Los Angeles and chaos erupts, both families reach their boiling points when they collide in this tense crime-thriller.”

1992 was produced by Snoop Dogg’s production company Death Row Pictures. “1992 was a life-changing time for me, from Deep Cover to The Chronic. But as things in my life were coming together, everything in L.A. was coming apart. 1992 is a heist movie that really captures all of that,” Snoop said in a statement via press release. “This movie is about an L.A. moment. Ariel made an outstanding film that depicts this moment in time. From my first encounter with Tyrese in Baby Boy to the performance in 1992, I had to be a part of this. And it’s only fitting that the film come out under Death Row Pictures as Death Row is synonymous with L.A. culture in the ’90s, ya dig?”

In his own statement, Gibson paid respects to his legendary co-star. “Ray Liotta blessed all of us in life while doing this film,” the Fast & Furious alum said. “For 1992 to be Ray’s last offering, we all feel so fortunate to have captured such a masterful and chilling performance.”