The clock is ticking down to the Detroit world premiere of "Detroit" the movie.

Several hours before the film was scheduled to start at 7:30 tonight, a line was already wrapped around the block at the Fox Theatre. An invitation-only crowd will be at the Fox for the screening of the powerful film about three African-American teenagers killed during Detroit's five days of rebellion in 1967 – a dramatization that's earning strong reviews for its intensity and relevance to today.

John Boyega ("Star Wars: The Force Awakens"), Anthony Mackie ("Captain America: The Winter Soldier"), Jason Mitchell (Eazy-E in "Straight Outta Compton"), Saginaw's Algee Smith (BET's "New Edition Story"), Laz Alonso (who plays a young U.S. Rep. John Conyers) and more cast members are expected to attend.

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So are Oscar-winning director Kathryn Bigelow and Oscar-winning screenwriter Mark Boal of "The Hurt Locker" and "Zero Dark Thirty" fame.

Earlier on Tuesday, Boyega and some of his co-stars met students at Emerson Elementary Middle School. The actors were there to celebrate a delivery of music instruments that's part of a $25,000 grant from VH1 Save The Music, which teamed with Annapurna Pictures on the music education effort.

The "Detroit" team has been visiting the city since Sunday and has appeared at the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History, the Detroit Historical Museum, the Motown Museum and several other landmarks to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Detroit riot and connect to the modern-day city.