By BETH HARRIS, Associated Press BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. (AP) — Angela Bassett once resorted to dialing 911 for help when she had trouble with a fireplace at home. Aisha Hinds needed help for a life-threatening emergency as a teenager. The actresses co-star on Fox’s “9-1-1” series about the pressurized world of police, firefighters and dispatchers […]
Category: TV and Film
Posted inAfro Briefs, ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT, ENTERTAINMENT, National News, NEWS, TV and Film
Charlamagne’s ‘Rape Sex’ Joke Incites Furious Discussion
By Vance Brinkley, Special to the AFRO While Charlamagne Tha God continues to dominate pop culture as a co-host of “The Breakfast Club,” his reputation as a controversial figure has made several headlines. Unfortunately, these past few weeks he’s apparently stirred up yet another conversation–but one that will make you cringe. Earlier this week, MadameNoire published […]
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Octavia Spencer and LeBron James to Produce `Madame CJ Walker’
By Sean Yoes, Baltimore AFRO Editor, syoes@afro.com Academy Award-winning actress Octavia Spencer is teaming up with NBA superstar and world champion LeBron James to bring the mythic life of Madame C.J. Walker to the small screen via Netflix. According to Variety, Spencer will star in an eight-episode series for Netflix, based on the book On Our Ground […]
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‘Equalizer 2’ Squeaks Past ‘Mamma Mia 2’ and Takes Top Spot
By LINDSEY BAHR, AP Film Writer In the battle of two very different sequels at the box office this weekend, Denzel Washington’s action pic “The Equalizer 2” has narrowly won out over the ABBA jukebox musical “Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again.” Studios on Sunday estimate that the R-rated Denzel Washington joint grossed $35.8 million […]
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A Lifelong Friendship Fuels the Chemistry of ‘Blindspotting’
By JOCELYN NOVECK, AP National Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Daveed Diggs was busy. Too busy. The actor was doing eight shows a week as Jefferson/ Lafayette in the Broadway sensation “Hamilton,” and wasn’t answering his emails. So there was only one thing his writing partner and creative soulmate, Rafael Casal, could do: Move across […]
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Denzel Washington Kills in ‘The Equalizer 2’
By The Associated Press You won’t usually find Denzel Washington in a movie sequel. He just doesn’t do them. Something about not wanting to repeat himself. So there must be something special indeed for him to break his own rule for “The Equalizer 2. Fans of the first film will instantly know why Washington is […]
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Baltimore’s Dara Renee Stars in Disney’s Latest ‘Freaky Friday’ Remake
By Nadine Matthews, Special to the AFRO When Dara Renee first moved to Baltimore as a young girl, it was a rough transition. She tells the AFRO, “It was hard at first because I like had this valley girl accent and I’m coming to the depths of Baltimore. They were like, ‘Girl, why do you talk […]
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$1.1M Awarded to Preserve African-American Historic Sites
By REBECCA SANTANA, Associated Press NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Grants totaling $1.1 million will help support important African-American heritage sites including the homes of jazz musician John Coltrane and playwright August Wilson, a Virginia location central to the slave trade and civil rights locations in Birmingham, a preservation group announced Friday. The money from the […]
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Actor and Director Damien D. Smith Puts New Spin on Term ‘Traveling For Work’
By Nadine Matthews, Special to the AFRO Actor and director Damien D. Smith is on a roll. His film “Jinn”, about a teenager whose life is turned upside down after her mother simultaneously converts to Islam and goes through an identity crisis, won the Special Jury Award at the most recent South by Southwest Festival (SXSW). […]
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Film Review: ‘The First Purge’ is depressingly prescient
By The Associated Press This Fourth of July, we’ve got a chance to celebrate America’s birth in a very American way — watching internecine warfare, spasms of savage violence and a dark government conspiracy pulling the strings. That’s right, it’s time for a new Purge. “The First Purge ,” the fourth film in the franchise, […]
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Oprah-Backed ‘Rape of Recy Taylor’ Recounts Black Woman’s Ordeal
By LYNN ELBER, AP Television Writer When Oprah Winfrey saluted unheralded #MeToo crusaders at the Golden Globes last January, she chose a rape victim from 1940s Alabama to drive home her point. “Recy Taylor, a name I know, and I think you should know, too,” Winfrey said, sketching the outlines of the African-American woman’s assault by […]
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Netflix’s Top Spokesman Fired Over Use of Racial Slur
By The Associated Press SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Netflix CEO Reed Hastings says he fired the company’s top spokesman over use of the N-word. The spokesman, Jonathan Friedland, confirmed in tweets that he was leaving the company, saying he was insensitive in speaking with his team about words that offend in comedy. In this Aug. […]