Movies
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Idris Elba, Regina King, Jonathan Majors, and Lakeith Stanfield Among All-Black Cast for Netflix Western The Harder They Fall
I’ve never been a big fan of Westerns, those films with characteristic tropes like shots of rolling tumbleweed, a saloon that becomes the scene of a brawl, and a bunch of white men riding around on horses and shooting people with long-barreled shotguns. But the announcement of a new all-Black Western on Netflix, The Harder…
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Exclusive: Regina King Explains Why She Chose Kingsley Ben-Adir to Portray Malcolm X for One Night in Miami
Regina King’s feature directorial debut may chronicle one epic night, but she has many prominent days and nights to follow as the buzz mushrooms into a cloud of pressure, anticipation and attention. Recently premiering at the 2020 Venice Film Festival, One Night in Miami made history as being the first-ever film helmed by a Black…
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MLK/FBI First Look Clip: How Martin Luther King Jr. Became the 'Most Dangerous Negro' After the March on Washington
Today, Martin Luther King, Jr. is lauded as an American hero—a direct contrast to the actual reality of an activist whose own country terrorized him. In the upcoming documentary MLK/FBI, that very contradiction is explored in depth. From the press release provided to The Root: Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. is remembered today as an…
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The March on Washington Film Festival Goes Virtual in 2020, Keeping Our Stories at the Center
Like many film festivals, the March on Washington Film Festival (MOWFF) is typically held in a physical location (in MOWFF’s case, Washington D.C.) but in 2020, everyone is all about the pivot to virtual. The 8th annual MOWFF is doing the same this year, hosting more than 20 events over seven days, including documentaries, panel…
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Halle Berry Expresses Disappointment in the Best Actress Oscar Category and Its Continued Lack of Diversity
In 2002, Halle Berry became the first Black woman to win an Academy Award for Best Actress, thanks to her work in the film Monster’s Ball. In the speech, she thanked Dorothy Dandridge, Lena Horne and Diahann Carroll for paving the way for her, and said she hoped that “every nameless, faceless woman of color”…
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Want a Best Picture Oscar Nomination in 2024? The Academy Requires You to Step Up Your Inclusion Game
The Academy is changing—and we don’t just mean its members. As part of its Academy Aperture 2025 initiative, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced on Tuesday that it will be enacting new representation and inclusion standards for Oscars eligibility in the Best Picture category. That’s right, if you want the biggest and…
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We May Not Have New Rihanna Music, But We’re Getting a New Rihanna Documentary Next Year
While Rihanna’s Navy could very well be awaiting the mythical ‘R9’ album until…Heaven only knows…at least they’ll have a new documentary about the superstar to hold them over. The long-awaited Rihanna documentary, directed by Peter Berg (Battleship, Friday Night Lights), will be hitting our television screens in summer 2021. According to a new Collider interview…
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Regina King Says Her Feature Directorial Debut Could 'Open Doors or Close Doors for More Black Female Directors'
I don’t know if you know this, but Regina King is kind of a big deal. The Oscar-winning actress is specifically a big deal at the 2020 Venice Film Festival having made history as the first Black woman director to have a film selected for the prestige festival with her feature directorial debut, One Night…
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John Boyega's Experiences With Racism Throughout His Star Wars Journey Made Him 'Much More Militant'
Like his Star Wars character Finn, John Boyega is a trooper in the midst of the storm in that he’ll get his work done—but best believe, he’ll fight for what is right, even if it means ruffling a few establishment feathers (also like Finn). What wasn’t right (and downright disgusting) was the racist treatment he…
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Chinonye Chukwu Is Directing a Film About Mamie Till Mobley's Relentless Pursuit of Justice Following Emmett Till's Brutal Murder
We will never forget the image of Emmett Louis Till’s grotesquely disfigured face, after his mother Mamie Till Mobley decided to intentionally leave his casket open so the nation could reckon with the hateful evil that caused it. Additionally, we shall never forget the stark pain on her face as she stood over her son’s…