Here Are the Best Black Films of 2023

Ahhh, 2023. We hate to see you go, but we love to watch you leave. Why? Because that means we get to revel in all the goodness you left us with. When it comes to Black films in particular, this year gave us a handful of knockout projects that not only did big numbers in the box office (looking at you, Creed III), but also shined a light on some exceptional new talent (ahem, Teyana Taylor in A Thousand and One) and reminded us all of the greatness of others (there’s a reason why we’re ending the year with The Color Purple, the cast is stacked from top to bottom.)

So, as we prepare to see the end credits roll on 2023, let’s take a look at some of out favorite films of the year. See you all at the theaters next year!

Creed III

We couldn’t mention the film in the opener without putting it near the top of the list. Creed III was not only Michael B. Jordan’s directorial debut, but it also broke several records in the box office by becoming the biggest box office opening ever for a sport film. It also marked the biggest opening for a Black director in their directorial debut.

A Thousand and One

Ever since Teyana Taylor dropped “Google Me, Baby,” years ago, we knew she was going to be someone special. This was later solidified with her impressive music career, but it’s her role in A.V. Rockwell’s directorial debut, A Thousand and One, that’s undoubtedly shined a bigger light on the talented multi-hyphenate, making her one to watch in the upcoming awards circuit moving forward.

The Blackening

The Blackening came out just days before the summer started but we’d dare to say that it was the best film to come out that season. Between the laughs, the horror, and the unsuspecting plot twist at the end, this film proved to be a fan fave for many and one that will hopefully go down in Black horror movie classic history.

Chevalier

There’s not too many roles that Kelvin Harrison Jr. doesn’t body, but his latest in Chevalier may just be his best one yet. The film centers around the life and legacy of Joseph Bologne, a little known gifted and Black composer, violinist and fencer. The illegitimate son of an Senegalese slave and a French plantation owner, we watch as Bologne rises through the ranks of society to becoming the Chevalier de Saint-Georges: a mostly celebrated figure in Queen Marie Antoinette’s inner circle.

The Little Mermaid

Halle Bailey became “part of our world” earlier this year when she took on the role of Ariel in Disney’s The Little Mermaid. And try as racists, trolls, and other detractors might, the movie still performed well and was a much needed dose of representation for Black and brown kids all over the world.

All Up in the Biz

It seems like just yesterday that the hip-hop community was mourning the loss of pioneer Biz Markie. Thankfully, now his life and musical contributions are forever immortalized in this masterfully done documentary, All Up in the Biz.

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse

If your spidey senses were tingling at the thought of us not including Spider-Man: Across the Spiderverse, then consider this a false alarm. There’s absolutely no way we’d leave out the fantastic followup to the popular franchise.

They Cloned Tyrone

We may have a good clue now about who exactly was cloning Tyrone and why, but if you still haven’t a clue, we highly suggest you check out the highly entertaining, Juel Taylor-directed film They Cloned Tyrone on Netflix ASAP.

American Fiction

While American Fiction is slated to come out in select theatres until December 15, but as someone whose seen it earlier this fall, let us be the first to tell you: This is a STELLAR film. Starring Jeffrey Wright, Sterling K. Brown, Issa Rae, Tracee Ellis Ross and more, the film is Cord Jefferson’s hilarious directorial debut, which confronts our culture’s obsession with reducing people to outrageous stereotypes.

Wright stars as Monk, a frustrated novelist who’s fed up with the establishment profiting from “Black” entertainment that relies on tired and offensive tropes. To prove his point, Monk uses a pen name to write an outlandish “Black” book of his own, a book that propels him to the heart of hypocrisy and the madness he claims to disdain.

Rustin

Out Friday, Colman “Keep a Job” Domingo shines as civil rights icon Bayard Rustin in the new Netflix film, Rustin. Directed by George C. Wolfe, the film shines a long overdue spotlight on the extraordinary man who, alongside giants like the Reverend Martin Luther King Jr., Adam Clayton Powell Jr., and Ella Baker, dared to imagine a different world, and inspired a movement in a march toward freedom.

Origin

Much like American Fiction, Origin, the forthcoming film directed by thee Ava DuVernay, has a phenomenal cast led by Academy Award and Emmy nominee Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor. The movie is a film adaptation of Isabel Wilkerson’s book Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents which centers around eight pillars that underlie caste systems across civilizations, including divine will, bloodlines, stigma, and more, according to the National Book Foundation.

The Color Purple

Dropping on Christmas Day, based off audience reactions from early screenings held on Thursday in Los Angeles, The Color Purple movie musical is gearing up to be the the most exciting film of the year—due in large part to its stacked cast which includes Fantasia Barrino, Danielle Brooks, Taraji P. Henson, Corey Hawkins, Colman Domingo, Halle Bailey and more.

All Dirt Roads Taste of Salt

A lyrical, decades-spanning exploration across a woman’s life in Mississippi, the feature debut from award-winning poet, photographer and filmmaker Raven Jackson is a haunting and richly layered portrait, a beautiful ode to the generations of people and places that shape us. The film released to critical acclaim on Nov. 3.

Renaissance: A Film by Beyonce

Per the film’s official synopsis, in the upcoming feature, fans can expect to see the journey of the Renaissance World Tour: from its inception to the opening in Stockholm, Sweden to the finale in Kansas City, Mo. The film will also center Beyoncé’s intention, hard work, involvement in every aspect of the production, her creative mind and purpose to create her legacy, and master her craft. Received with extraordinary acclaim, Beyoncé’s Renaissance World Tour created a sanctuary for freedom and shared joy, for more than 2.7 million fans. The film drops Dec. 1 in theaters.

Rye Lane

Yas (Vivian Oparah) and Dom (David Jonsson), two 20-somethings both reeling from bad break-ups, connect over the course of an eventful day in South London all while helping each other deal with their nightmare exes, and potentially restoring their faith in romance. It’s available to stream on Hulu now.

Equalizer 3

In Denzel Washington’s potentially last hurrah as Robert McCall, the the third installation of the popular franchise follows his character since giving up his life as a government assassin as he struggles to reconcile the horrific things he’s done in the past. While finding a strange solace in serving justice on behalf of the oppressed, he eventually and surprisingly winds up in Southern Italy, where he finds a home and discovers his new friends are under the control of local crime bosses. As events turn deadly, McCall knows what he has to do: become his friends’ protector by taking on the mafia.