Black in Period Films

Some sad news for Princess Tiana fans!! Walt Disney Animation Studios has pulled the plug on their much anticipated ‘Tiana’ series and will no longer be creating original longform streaming content. According to The Hollywood Reporter “sources close to the streaming series say that despite best efforts, including several changes to the creative team, Tiana ultimately could not get to where it needed to be given production costs.” Whatever the reason, I am very disappointed at the series' cancellation. I had been keeping a close eye on the project and was very excited to support it on Disney+. Disney first announced that Princess Tiana (voiced by Anika Noni Rose) from 2009 film The Princess and the Frog, will be getting her own series on Disney+ in December of 2020. Nearly a year later, we got a first look at concept art for ‘Tiana’ in November of 2021. At that time the expected release date was in 2023. The news was met with excitement from fans. Along with the concept art came t...

The Wonder Years season 2 will premiere June 14 on ABC! I really enjoyed season 1 of the series and can't wait to see what Dean, his family, and friends gets up to in the next season.  The series can also be streamed on HULU.

Sony Pictures Television’s TriStar has a television series based on the life of Malcolm X in the works.   If the project moves forward, the series will be based on two novels which were both co-written by Malcolm’s daughter, Ilyasah Shabazz. The novels are X: A Novel which was co-written by Kekla Magoon and The Awakening of Malcolm X, which was co-written by Tiffany D. Jackson. X: A Novel follows Malcolm X’s life from his childhood to his imprisonment at age twenty. The Awakening of Malcolm X follows Malcolm’s time in prison, his decision to join the Nation of Islam, and his leaving prison as Malcolm X. Ilyasah Shabazz is an activist and motivational speaker. Shabazz has written six books including: Growing Up X: A Memoir by the Daughter of Malcolm X. with Kim McLarin Malcolm Little: The Boy Who Grew Up to Become Malcolm X. The Diary of Malcolm X: 1964. X: A Novel. with Kekla Magoon Betty Before X. with Renée Watson The Awakening of Malcolm X. with Tiffany D. Jackson Ilyasah ...

Mabel "Madea" Earlene Simmons a character created and played by Tyler Perry is getting her own origin story on Showtime.  The series idea for a Madea origin story was created by Tyler Perry and Tim Palen. The series, titled Mabel is being developed by Showtime. Mabel has received a multiple-script order and will be written by JaNeika James and JaSheika James. The pair have been staff writers and supervising producers on Empire. Mabel will follow Madea as a 20-something black woman 1972’s Atlanta, Georgia. The series title Mabel comes for Madea's real name Mabel Simmons.   Admittedly, I am a bit weary of how this series could turn out. However, there is a bigger part of me that wants to see how Madea's life is handled. We know quite a bit about Madea. According to the internet Madea was born in Greensburg, Louisiana on June 26, 1935. Madea is known for her many outrageous claims throughout her various stage, film, and television appearances. One such claim bein...

     Showtime has a drama series about Zulu King Shaka in the works!  Antoine Fuqua is onboard to direct and executive produce. Besides directing Training Day (the 2001 film that earned Denzel Washington an Academy Award for Best Actor), Fuqua has also period films like King Arthur (2004) and The Magnificent Seven (2016).      Writers and executive producers Olu Odebunmi and Tolu Awosika are two of the creative minds behind “Shaka: King of the Zulu Nation”. The series will be rooted in actual events chronicling “Shaka’s unlikely rise to power, uniting multiple tribes across vast stretches of Africa in the early 19th century to transform his power into legend, on par with history’s most seminal figures”.      Fuqua said, “This project offers a gateway to our past that is so critical to our global history and yet so often marginalized,” he added, “Through “Shaka: King of the Zulu Nation,” we hope to bring this saga to life, all the tea...

It was recently announced that Jeremy Pope and Laura Harrier will be in Ryan Murphy's upcoming Netflix series 'Hollywood'. Along with Pope and Harrier, actors Samara Weaving, David Corenswet, Patti LuPone, Holland Taylor, and Darren Criss have also joined the cast. Jeremy Pope is playing a character named Archie, while Laura Harrier's character is named Camille. View this post on Instagram “Hollywood” — my new Netflix show co-created with Ian Brennan — begins principal photography this summer. A love letter to the Golden Age of Tinseltown, this straight-to-series production will be my third show for Netflix and I couldn’t be more excited or proud about the work we are doing together. More to come… A post shared by Ryan Murphy (@mrrpmurphy) on Feb 22, 2019 at 9:02am PST With the series being described as "A love letter to the Golden Age of Tinseltown", it is very likely that the s...

Shondaland’s first Netflix project  is based on Julia Quinn’s best-selling  Bridgerton  novels.  Bridgerton Family Series by Julia Quinn Shot in the London the historical drama is set in the lavish and highly competitive world of Regency London high society.  The Official Description : "From the glittering ballrooms of Mayfair to the aristocratic palaces of Park Lane and beyond, the series unveils a seductive, sumptuous world replete with intricate rules and dramatic power struggles, where no one is truly ever on steady ground. At the heart of the show is the powerful Bridgerton family. Comprised of eight close-knit siblings, this funny, witty, daring and clever group must navigate the upper ten thousand’s marriage mart in search of romance, adventure and love."  The Cast The Julie Andrews voices Lady Whistledown, the unseen gossip writer. Rege-Jean Page ( Roots 2016 ) as Simon Bassett A Duke who finds himself the target of the...

Variety has reported the casting for the upcoming Barry Jenkins’ Amazon series. The series will be lead by South African actress Thuso Mbedu as Cora, Caesar is to be played by Brit Aaron Pierre, and little Homer will be played by Chase W. Dillon. The series is based on the Colson Whitehead book “ The Underground Railroad ”. The novel is a winner of the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award, in addition to being a #1 New York Times bestseller. The Underground Railroad Summary : Cora is a slave on a cotton plantation in Georgia. Life is hell for all the slaves, but especially bad for Cora; an outcast even among her fellow Africans, she is coming into womanhood—where even greater pain awaits. When Caesar, a recent arrival from Virginia, tells her about the Underground Railroad, they decide to take a terrifying risk and escape. Matters do not go as planned—Cora kills a young white boy who tries to capture her. Though they manage to find a station and head north, t...

The hit series Black-ish may be getting another spinoff! This time we will be taken back in time. Set in the 1980’s the prequel spinoff will follow a pre-teen version of Tracee Ellis Ross’ Rainbow Johnson. Young Rainbow will be played by newcomer Arica Himmel. Tika Sumpter (Southside with You, Bessie, Sparkle) will play Rainbow’s mother Alicia, alongside Anders Holm as Rainbow’s father Paul. Rainbow’s parents have previously appeared on Black-ish and were portrayed by Anna Deveare Smith and Beau Bridges. The prospective, series (which does not yet have a name) could be the second spinoff of the black-ish franchise; Freeform’s Grown-ish being the first. The potential series will follow a 12-year-old Bow, who is described as emotionally and intellectually brilliant yet clueless, confused and awkward.  Little actor and actress Ethan William Childress and Mykal-Michelle Harris will play Bow’s siblings Johan and Santamonica. The adult versions of Johan and Santamo...

In 1927, the amazing Zora Neale Hurston interviewed Cudjo Lewis, the last living survivor of the Middle Passage and turned it into a book. The book failed to receive a publisher for two major reasons: 1) it was written in vernacular and 2) because it described the involvement of other African people in the business of Atlantic slave trade. The book was lost to history until it was fully published May 8, 2018, and titled Barracoon: The Story of the Last "Black Cargo". Cudjo Lewis' extraordinary story is now being adapted by Common under his overall deal at Lionsgate TV.  Lionsgate TV and Common recently acquired the rights to develop the book as a limited series. I look forward to seeing this part of history brought to life. I am pleased that Common is using his deal with Lionsgate TV to create a period series. Get your own copy of this amazing novel! Disclosure: This blog contains affiliate links. When you make a purchase from the links Blacks in...