Movies
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Oscar Nominee Hannah Beachler Talks Breaking Ceilings and What’s Next: ‘Black People Belong in Space’
It’s almost been a year to the day since Black Panther production designer Hannah Beachler walked The Root (and our readers!) through the enticing world of Wakanda—a world we’d come to uphold forever. Speaking to Beachler, her husky voice warms over you like the homegirl you always had—or wanted. Making history as the first African…
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Daniel Kaluuya and Lakeith Stanfield in Talks to Star in Fred Hampton Film Produced by Ryan Coogler
A film about Fred Hampton is coming from Warner Brothers, reportedly titled Jesus Was My Homeboy. Hampton was the founder and chairman of the Chicago chapter of the Black Panther Party. On Dec. 4, 1969, the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office and the Federal Bureau of Investigation ordered Chicago police to infiltrate the party’s headquarters.…
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Negro Noir: The Preacher’s Son Truly Pops Off During the Last 15 Minutes
Movies that are “so bad, they’re good” are one of life’s unsung treasures. And like anything, adding blackness to that principle is like adding proper seasoning. Thus, I introduce you to our new series reviewing/recapping bad black movies, Negro Noir. As our queen-in-chief Danielle Belton pointed out, it’s so black, the title of the series…
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Watch: Octavia Spencer in Ma Is What Happens When White People Don't Mind Their Business
Horror and thriller typically involve a bunch of eager white teens who can’t find it in their DNA to mind their business, always with the urge to explore some shit. What happens when that “shit” turns out to be a lonely black lady who just wants to have some fun? Well … too much fun,…
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Alfre Woodard Embodies the Escape a Tired Black Woman Needs and Deserves in Juanita
We’ve all heard the black woman motto around this clusterfuck of a world that needs fixing: “Fine, I’ll do it.” But what of the black woman who is tired of doing it? When does she get to rest? When does she get to escape? When does she get to just … be? Cue Netflix, with…
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3 Generations of Shaft Are Premiering at the American Black Film Festival. Will I Be There? You Damn Right
Remember that complicated man who was misunderstood by everyone but his woman? Well, now there are three of them. It’s been 19 years since the release of John Singleton’s Shaft, starring Samuel L. Jackson. Can you believe it?! And even longer since we first saw Richard Roundtree don the baddest jacket in the game: 48…
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A Whole Blue World: Will Smith's Final Form as the Genie Is Revealed
Will Smith promised us blue, and damnit, we got blue. When first-look images of Disney’s live-action Aladdin surfaced in December, Smith’s Genie looked more like a transracial genie, and the original animated film’s fans weren’t amused. But Smith assured us this was only his human disguise, not his final form. Basically, the actor reminded us…
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What Men Want: Inside the Minds of Actor Aldis Hodge, Producer Will Packer and Writer Tina Gordon Chism
If you had the ability to read one person’s mind, who would you choose? Would it be someone you know, a celebrity, or a historical figure? Starring Taraji P. Henson, Aldis Hodge, Richard Roundtree, Tracy Morgan and Erykah Badu, What Men Want follows Ali Davis (Henson), a successful agent who feels stilted in the “man’s…
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'She's Small Like Me': First Look at Cynthia Erivo as Harriet Tubman
As film is a visual medium, it makes sense that buzz heightens once the audience gets a peek at movie stills, photo shoots or other behind-the-scenes photos connected to a film. Such is the case with Harriet, an upcoming biographical drama from Focus Features, chronicling the story of Harriet Tubman, who helped free hundreds of…