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'Billie Holiday Is Probably One of Our First Civil Rights Leaders': Lee Daniels Discusses His Upcoming Biopic at The Root Institute
It’s been nearly 50 years since the debut of Lady Sings the Blues, which was a huge inspiration for writer-director-producer Lee Daniels—so much so, that he is now directing his own biographical drama about the iconic Billie Holiday, The United States vs. Billie Holiday. Through her art—especially her stirring song, “Strange Fruit”—Holiday became pivotal in…
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NBCUniversal's Peacock Announces 2 New and Timely Late Night Shows With Larry Wilmore and Amber Ruffin
NBCUniversal’s new streaming platform Peacock just announced some new comedy content that is very relevant and needed during these somber times. Amber Ruffin will be hosting The Amber Ruffin Show and Larry Wilmore will host the Untitled Larry Wilmore Show as part of the streaming platform’s weekly topical late-night block. You may know Wilmore from…
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Lee Daniels Discusses How He Juxtaposes Art With Activism at The Root Institute
Lee Daniels has something to say. Known for the dramatic flair sprinkled throughout his art, the writer-director-producer never shies away from controversial and emotional topics as has been displayed in his works such as Empire, Star and Precious. Daniels has routinely prioritized the importance of telling real and gritty stories within the Black community, especially…
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Yes, Baby, Yes: Remember That Shelved Controversial Black-ish Episode? It's Now Available on Hulu
2020 is unprecedented-ish. Remember back in 2017, a mysterious Black-ish episode titled “Please, Baby, Please” (based on the Spike Lee and Tonya Lewis Lee children’s book of the same name) became wrapped in some controversy because of its reported politically-charged themes? It caused such a ruckus, and I pretty much figured the episode would never…
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Social Cinematography: Ava DuVernay to Produce Docuseries Based on 'One Perfect Shot' Twitter Account
If you’ve been on Twitter for a good amount of time, you’ve probably seen whole-ass relationships, babies, careers, projects and deals materialize from Twitter. “It’s not just Twitter,” isn’t just a saying—it’s reality. As for the entertainment industry, one particular project we can point to is the upcoming film Zola, which came from an epic…
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'You're Not Actually Anti-Racist': Jurnee Smollett Checks the Hypocrisy of Hollywood Liberalism
Jurnee Smollett is starring in quite a timely upcoming project on HBO—the much-anticipated Lovecraft Country. The series, which is a period piece, is especially relevant since we’re following its protagonists on the “quest to disrupt white supremacy,” which is both intriguing and frustrating. We’re still fighting this damn fight. Still. The series synopsis, via HBO’s…
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Zoë Kravitz Calls Out Hulu for Its Lack of TV Shows Starring Women of Color Following High Fidelity Cancellation
Zoë Kravitz’s latest TV show may be canceled, but you can’t cancel her outspoken nature. On Wednesday, Hulu announced High Fidelity had been canceled after just one season. The Hollywood Reporter provided a rundown of the short-lived series, which was originally developed for Disney+: The series, a reimagining of the 2000 movie but told from…
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Danielle Brooks to Star in Robin Roberts Presents: The Mahalia Jackson Story
Can we get a ‘Hallelujah’ for Danielle Brooks? The Orange Is the New Black star has been cast to portray gospel legend Mahalia Jackson in Lifetime’s Robin Roberts Presents: The Mahalia Jackson Story. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the newly announced role is the first of a four-film deal between Roberts and Lifetime. The acclaimed…
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John Boyega to Star in Steve McQueen Series Portraying a Police Officer Who Wants to Change the Force From Within
John Boyega is workin’…and it looks like his portrayal will be tackling a timely and often controversial topic: police brutality. Back in 2019, Variety broke the news that Boyega would be joining Letitia Wright in an upcoming anthology series from Steve McQueen (12 Years a Slave, Widows) entitled Small Axe. At the time, not much…
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Mo-to-the! What's New and Black on Netflix in August 2020
It’s August, which means we’re in the last full month of summer (spoiler alert: it doesn’t really slap during a lockdown), and we have more strong Blackness coming to Netflix. So, we already announced the smorgasbord of the 90s/00s content that will be coming to Netflix. Here’s a reminder that Netflix is serving the goodness…
