-
Felicia Pride, on the 'Vulnerability, Sensuality, Softness and Hardness' of the Women in Her Short Film, Tender
TV and film writer (and former contributor to The Root) Felicia Pride has an array of stories bubbling inside of her. Leading with a fascinating Hollywood journey that includes TV writing credits in Queen Sugar, a festival-accepted feature film and more exciting things to come, Pride embodies her surname. Having found Pride through her creator…
-
Frankly My Dear, We Don't Give a Damn About These Woke Gestures If We Don't See Systemic Change in Hollywood
Hollywood is riding the woke train—without making any necessary stops along the journey to do the real work. Earlier in the month, we mentioned the emptiness of symbolic gestures in the form of Black boxes. Well, it seems like those black boxes are still continuing to cover up the bigger picture in yet other ways.…
-
Colin in Black & White: Ava DuVernay and Colin Kaepernick Team Up for New Netflix Dramatic Limited Series
The man we’ve grown to know as the professional football player who took a knee in protest against police brutality is giving us a peek into the young boy whose experiences started it all. Colin Kaepernick and Ava DuVernay have partnered up in a new Netflix dramatic limited series called Colin in Black & White,…
-
Anthony Mackie Calls Out Marvel for Its Lack of Diversity Behind the Camera
Anthony Mackie’s Marvel character Falcon not only has quite the big responsibility ahead of him as the future Captain America, but Mackie the actor does, as well—specifically, speaking to the fight for diversity and inclusion. In a recent interview with Daveed Diggs as part of Variety’s Actors on Actors series, Mackie pointed out that he…
-
I Attended the 2020 BET Awards From the Comfort of My Home…Just Like Everyone Else!
I’m pretty sure BET was amongst those of us who wistfully declared, “2020 is going to be my year.” Why BET? Well, because this year marks the 20th anniversary of the BET Awards and is the 40th anniversary of the network itself (the latter of which lent itself to a tribute to BET co-founder Bob…
-
Michael B. Jordan's Outlier Society and Amazon Studios Launch Nostalgic Drive-In Series Highlighting Black and Brown Films
I am totally one of those people who believe the movie theater experience is special. Other than the primary fear and worry about my health and the health of my family and friends, I’ve been struggling with the fact that movie theaters aren’t currently accessible to me. Though the concept has largely been phased out,…
-
Animated Allies: Kristen Bell and Jenny Slate Step Down From Cartoon Roles So They Can Be Voiced by Black People
The year 2020 is full of unexpected plot twists, one of which has been Hollywood taking accountability and attempting to actually right the wrongs of the past—after being thoroughly called out on social media about it, that is. This time, we’re honing in on Black creators in animation, specifically those who work in voiceover (V.O.)…
-
The Music Industry’s Utter Disrespect of Black Women Feels Like Constant White Noise
There is a phenomenon that occurs when you’re going about your day and can’t get a particular song out of your head. We refer to that song as an “earworm.” Well, a constant buzzing in the back of my head has recently gotten louder and louder: I refer to this song as an ear parasite—specifically,…
-
Kendrick Sampson Pens Letter to Hollywood Calling for Police Divestment, Over 300 Black Creators Sign
In the movement toward police defunding and abolition, it looks like Black Hollywood is speaking up. In a letter shared with Variety, actor Kendrick Sampson (Insecure, Miss Juneteenth) called for the mainstream Hollywood industry “to divest from the police and invest in the Black community” and was joined by several organizations, black artists and black…
-
Pennsylvania Supreme Court Allows Bill Cosby to Appeal 2018 Sexual Assault Conviction
Pennsylvania’s highest court has decided to give Bill Cosby another chance, about 6 months after his initial appeal request was denied. According to CBS Philadelphia, the court granted the 82-year-old an opportunity to appeal his 2018 sexual assault conviction for drugging and sexually assaulting Temple University employee Andrea Constand in 2004. Back in December, the…
