Black in Period Films

  The Woman King is the remarkable story of the Agojie, the all-female unit of warriors who protected the African Kingdom of Dahomey in the 1800s with skills and a fierceness unlike anything the world has ever seen. Inspired by true events, The Woman King follows the emotionally epic journey of General Nanisca (Viola Davis) as she trains the next generation of recruits and readies them for battle against an enemy determined to destroy their way of life. Some things are worth fighting for. The film features a star-studded cast including Viola Davis,Lashana Lynch,Sheila Atim,Thuso Mbedu,John Boyega,Jayme Lawson,Jordan Bolger and is directed by Gina Prince-Bythewood.  See The Woman King rise exclusively in cinemas September 16.

Tensions rise when trailblazing blues singer Ma Rainey and her band gather at a recording studio in Chicago in 1927.

Checkout this photos from the upcoming adaption of August Wilson's 'Ma Rainey's Black Bottom'.  Chicago, 1927. A recording session. Tensions rise between Ma Rainey, her ambitious horn player and the white management determined to control the uncontrollable "Mother of the Blues". The film features Viola Davis as Ma Rainey and Chadwick Boseman as Levee in his final film. Viola Davis front and center as Ma Rainey. (Credit David Lee/Netflix) Boseman with Michael Potts (Slow Drag) and Colman Domingo (as Cutler). (Credit David Lee/Netflix) The film is directed by George C. Wolfe who also did amazing work with period films 'Lackawanna Blues' (2005) and 'The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks' (2017). I am loving how different Viola Davis is looking here. She looks like Ma Rainey here. (Credit David Lee/Netflix) Boseman with Glynn Turman (Toledo), Michael Potts (Slow Drag), and Colman Domingo (as Cutler). (Credit David Lee/Netflix) 'Ma Rainey's B...

ABC's is set to release a second Live in Front of a Studio Audience event from Jimmy Kimmel and Norman Lear. This time the event will feature a live episode of the much beloved series, Good Times! As you recall the first episode of Live in Front of a Studio Audience featured All in the Family and The Jeffersons. The second will feature All in the Family and Good Times episodes.  The cast includes Andre Braugher as James Evans, Viola Davis as Florida Evans, Jay Pharoah as J.J. Evans, Corinne Foxx as Thelma Evans, Asante Blackk as Michael Evans, and Tiffany Haddish as Willona Woods. The executive producer team has added Kerry Washington to the team. Washington played Helen Willis from The Jeffersons in the first episode of Live in Front of a Studio Audience.  The release date has yet to be announced.

We have great news about the Focus Feature Harriet Tubman biopic ( source ). Not only has the cast been fleshed out, but we also know that production for the film has been set. Focus Features and Universal Pictures International will distribute the film worldwide. The film will chronicle the life of heroic abolitionist and spy Harriet Tubman.  The cast includes Cynthia Erivo (The Color Purple) as Tubman. Fellow Tony Award®-winner and Grammy Award®-winner Leslie Odom Jr. (Hamilton, Murder on the Orient Express), Joe Alwyn (Boy Erased, The Favourite, Mary Queen of Scots), Jennifer Nettles, and Clarke Peters (Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri) round out the cast.  The amazing director Kasi Lemmons (Eve’s Bayou) will be directing the screenplay that she co-wrote with Gregory Allen Howard (Ali, Remember the Titans). They’re joined by cinematographer John Toll and costume designer Paul Tazewell. Josh McLaughlin, Focus Features president of product...

And the WINNERS are ... Drum Roll Please! Denzel Washington won Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role for “Fences.” The cast of “Hidden Figures” won for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture Viola Davis won Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role for “Fences.”

A former professional baseball player (Denzel Washington) creates tension in his family when he denies his teenage son's dream of playing college football and comes home with the baby he had through an affair. Release date: December 16, 2016 Director: Denzel Washington Screenplay: August Wilson Starring: Denzel Washington, Viola Davis, Jovan Adepo, and Russell Hornsby Period: 1950s One Word Reaction: INTENSE