The film industry journal Variety reported that the legal drama "Tulia" will tell the tale of a small Texan town where a tenth of the black population was targeted by drugs charges in 1999 and later mostly pardoned -- a case that drew accusations of racism.

Berry and Thornton will be directed in the film by John Singleton, who directed the 1991 cult classic "Boyz n the Hood," a drama about the violent lives of black youngsters in a Los Angeles ghetto.

The 40-year-old actress won the Oscar for best actress in 2002 for her performance in "Monster's Ball," -- a film in which she played a black woman who had an affair with a white racist portrayed by Thornton.