British star John Boyega recently said he signed on for Viola Davis-led The Woman King as he believed the film explores an important chapter in Black history beyond surface level.
The Gina Prince-Bythewood directorial about an all-female warrior unit that protected the African kingdom of Dahomey in the 19th century features Boyega as King Ghezo. The Woman King also features Lashana Lynch, Thuso Mbedu and Sheila Atim. Bythewood has also penned the screenplay along with Dana Stevens.
As much as the action sequences will enthral the audiences, the “nuanced and detailed look” at Black history is not to be missed out, the Star Wars alum said.
“I would tell the audience that it's much more of a nuanced detailed take that goes into literally the journey of characters and their emotions as they change over time as these events kind of happen to them. We're doing more than just hitting the surface level points that we know of this kind of history. We're going deeper and deeper,” Boyega said.
The Woman King primarily focuses on Davis's character General Nanisca, the leader of an all-female group of warriors called the Agojie, and how she trains the next generation of warriors to fight their enemies.
The upcoming film may have a period feel to it, but the themes it tackles are contemporary, said Boyega, who is also known for featuring in films such as Attack the Block, Detroit, Breaking and Steve McQueen's acclaimed anthology series Small Axe.
"It explores different perspectives and some very hard-hitting points around femininity, togetherness, family and war. There are so many stories in there and there’s so many side stories with all the different characters and the ensemble that we have," the actor said.
Boyega revealed one of the reasons for saying yes to the project was the chance to collaborate with Viola Davis, the Oscar-winning actor of Fences. “I wanted to just collaborate with Viola Davis because I'd watched her work coming up. I saw that as a great opportunity... She was fantastic to work with. I was really excited to just come, sit and collaborate with her on the few scenes that we have.”
Bythewood, who previously made Love & Basketball (2000), The Secret Life of Bees (2008) and Charlize Theron-led The Old Guard (2020), was another name Boyega ticked off his career wish list with The Woman King. “Gina personally reached out to me, which I felt very flattered by because I respect her work and then it was the opportunity of working with Black women.”
“In my opinion, some of the best Black women in the industry have shown that they can do whatever they want within this field. I just wanted to be a part of their journey also,” he said.
The movie, produced by Cathy Schulman, Davis, Julius Tennon and Maria Bello, will be released by Sony Pictures Entertainment India on October 14 in English and Tamil.
