Black in Period Films

One of the great things about Blair Underwood (besides his good looks and talent) is how engaging he is. Because of how active he is on his social media platforms, period film fans have been gifted with a behind the scenes look at the  Madam C.J. Walker mini series. Blair  Underwood is playing Charles Joseph Walker,  Madam C. J. Walker husband.  #OnSet #Netflix Havin' nothin' but fun playing CJ Walker, husband to #MadamCJWalker played by the incomparable #Amazing #AcademyAwardWinner @octaviaspencer pic.twitter.com/AfZUaXOsJb — Blair Underwood (@BlairUnderwood) August 6, 2019 We get a nice shoot of the script and Blair in his costume. His demeanor and poise is perfect for stories taken place in the past.  Becasue of how he holds himself the costume looks natural on him; as if he is from the era. It takes a village...fo real! Just another day @ the office. Lol! #CJWalker husband of #MadamCJWalker @octaviaspencer #Netflix #AmazingCast...

At the 35 second mark we get a quick glance of the incredible Sterling K. Brown. His character can be heard wishing Midge (Rachel Brosnahan) and Susie (Alex Bornstein) a happy flight. Brown's role in the Amazon series is under wraps and as of today his IMDb page hasn't even be updated to include the credit. We have known about Sterling K. Brown's involvement in the series since April of this year when we were teased with a twitter video. I’m beyond excited to share some pretty marvelous news... #MrsMaisel , I’m coming for you!🙌🏿🙌🏿🙌🏿 @MaiselTV @PrimeVideo pic.twitter.com/0QCVhJSgSJ — Sterling K Brown (@SterlingKBrown) April 15, 2019 Along with Brown, actor Leroy McClain will be joining 'The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel' cast as soul singer Shy Baldwin. According to the official series description: " Midge and Susie discover that life on tour with Shy is glamorous but humbling, and they learn a lesson about show business they’ll never forget. ...

Daveed Diggs to play Frederick Douglass Daveed Diggs will take on the role of legendary abolitionist, Frederick Douglass in Showtime's upcoming limited series. The Blumhouse Television series is based on the National Book Award-winning novel The Good Lord Bird by James McBride.  Character Description:  "Diggs will play Frederick Douglass, the well-known orator and leader of the abolitionist movement and Union Civil War effort. Douglass works with Brown and encourages the raid on Harpers Ferry, but finds Brown's planning and leadership style questionable and his approach dangerous, bordering on suicidal." The series will be told from the point of view of Onion (Joshua Johnson-Lionel), "a fictional enslaved boy, who is part of Brown’s motley crew of abolitionist soldiers during the time of Bleeding Kansas, eventually participating in the famous 1859 raid on the Army depot at Harpers Ferry. Brown’s raid failed to initiate the slave revolt he intended, but ...

Crystal Clarke as Miss Lambe Sanditon (1817) is an unfinished novel by the English writer Jane Austen. In January 1817, Austen began work on a new novel  but only completed eleven chapters before stopping work in mid-March 1817. Her illness most likely prevented her from continuing. In the unfinished novel, Georgiana Lambe is described as “a young West Indian of large fortune, in delicate health,” who is “about seventeen, half mulatto, chilly and tender.” In the series, Georgiana is far wealthier than many of the white English people she interacts with, and her relationship to polite society is a big part of the plot. Crystal Clarke as Miss Lambe with Rose Williams as Charlotte Heywood Miss Georgiana is not a "race-bent" character or a modern insert. The Jane Austen wrote her as a woman of African ancestry. A wealthy West-Indian character included in a novel from the early 1800s.  Austen's works are considered the pinnacle, so Miss Lambe's inclusion is n...

Focus Features has released the poster and trailer for the upcoming Harriet Tubman biopic, titled Harriet. Tony award winning actress Cynthia Erivo leads the film as Harriet Tubman. The legendary Kasi Lemmons (Eve's Bayou) is the director. Alongside Erivo, Janelle Monae, Leslie Odom Jr., Vanessa Bell Calloway, Zackary Momoh, Vondie Curtis-Hall and Deborah Ayorinde round out the cast. Check out the thrilling trailer below!!

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...

Producer Billy Peterson has chosen “Seacole,” as his first feature film for his new production company, Racing Green Pictures. Racing Green Pictures says that one of its goals is to back prestige films with strong social messages. Seacole fits the bill as it will center on Mary Seacole, a pioneering Jamaican nurse who cared for wounded British soldiers during the Crimean War and found herself at odds with Florence Nightingale. Period film mainstay Gugu Mbatha-Raw (“Belle”, "Free State of Jones") will be playing the British-Jamaican business woman and nurse who worked behind the lines during the Crimean War. Mbatha-Raw will be joined by Sam Worthington (“Avatar”). “Seacole” will shoot over the next two months in Malta, Romania and London. The goal is to be ready for a festival circuit debut in 2020.