Tonight marks the theatrical debut of screenwriter Dana Stevens and director Gina Prince-Bythewood’s “The Woman King,” the Viola Davis-starring historical action-adventure epic about the Agojie, the all-female group of warriors loyal to the new King Ghezo (John Boyega).
Set in 1832, Davis plays Nanisca, a General in the West African Kingdom of Dahomey.Hollywood has a deeply problematic history with its lack of (or disrespectful) representation of Black performers, especially Black women.
A film like “The Woman King,” with an almost exclusively Black cast, shouldn’t be history-making by now, but it is, and holy hell is it glorious.Lashana Lynch who plays Izogie in the film has already called it “the new blueprint for film,” hoping that the success of “The Woman King” will embolden others to take risks and tell stories outside of the status quo.
Prince-Bythewood said it best when she stated, “In this story, we have
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