The film stars Chon, Alicia Vikander, Mark O'Brien, Linh Dan Pham, Sydney Kowalske, Vondie Curtis-Hall and Emory Cohen.

Blue Bayou had its world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival in July 13, 2021 and was released in the United States on September 17, 2021, by Focus Features.

Due to his criminal record, Antonio is unable to find additional employment to support his family, though Kathy offers to resume working to help make ends meet.

After being physically harassed by NOPD officers Ace and Denny, the former being Jessie’s absent biological father, Antonio is arrested.

He is placed into ICE custody and faces deportation when it is revealed that his adoptive parents never naturalized him pursuant to Child Citizenship Act of 2000.

Antonio and Kathy seek to appeal his deportation with the help of immigration lawyer Barry Boucher, who requests a $5,000 retainer.

Antonio strikes up a friendship with Parker, a Vietnamese refugee with terminal cancer who came to America with her father when she was a child, and whose mother and brother had died during the journey.

On the day of Antonio’s hearing, Kathy, Jessie, his friends, Ace, and his mother, arrive to offer support but he never shows up.

Larsen said, "Every deportee we spoke to – it didn’t matter if they were from Panama, Korea, Venezuela, Vietnam, China – they all responded with the same thing: This is my story.

The website's critics consensus reads: "Blue Bayou can be indelicate in its attempts to tug the heartstrings, but solid acting and a genuinely affecting story make this drama difficult to ignore.

[27] Adam Crapser, a Korean adoptee raised in the United States and who was later subject to a high-profile deportation case, claims the movie is largely based upon his personal life story without his consent.

[28] In an interview with NBC News, Crapser stated, “People who have experienced difficult things deserve the dignity to tell their story when and if they’re ready.

I ask Justin and his team to stop using other people’s trauma to support his Hollywood ambitions, and for my friends to speak the truth about this film.

[29] Focus Features issued a statement from Adoptee Advocacy, a newly formed group after the film with the support of Focus Features that includes members who consulted during the production, that they “see strong similarities to many of our histories: abusive families, getting in trouble with law, being deported while leaving behind small children.” Adoptee Advocacy called the boycott a "devastating gut punch to us.”[28] In response to the allegations, Chon released a statement saying that as part of his research for the film he had worked with 13 adoptees, and that the film "is not about one person.