A lot has changed since the first season of ABC’s “Scandal” which first premiered back in 2012. Characters have died and evolved, relationships have ended, the format of the series has shifted drastically, and most importantly, Olivia Pope is not the same woman we first met. Now in its sixth season, the Washington, D.C.-based drama has found its footing once again after a rocky past couple of seasons. One thing that has changed considerably over the past few years is the way that “Scandal” addresses Olivia Pope’s identity as a Black woman. During the first season, Olivia Pope’s Blackness was nearly ignored.
In a recent interview with “Glamour,” the series’ star Kerry Washington spoke out about how “Scandal’s” stance on race has evolved and gotten stronger over time. Washington said, “In the first season it was as if Olivia Pope was raceless. There was no denying that Olivia was a Black woman, because I’m a Black woman, playing her in badass white trench coats that call to attention the fact that I’m not looking like anybody else on television. But we didn’t talk about her identity as a Black person.”
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In the upcoming TV One film, “Media,” Pooch Hall stars as Clay Jones, the eldest son, and CEO of Jones Universal Media Properties (JUMP). Hot-headed and determined to succeed at any cost, Clay attempts to keep a tight reign on his family’s empire in the midst of his mother’s; founder Jackie Jones (Penny Johnson Jerald) interventions as well as his siblings’ various indiscretions that lead to revenge, betrayal and a devastating tragedy. Brian White, Chrystee Pharris, Blue Kimble, Gary Dourdan, Stephen Bishop and Finesse Mitchell also star.
Fifteen years after the iconic television series starring Kiefer Sutherland hit TV screens, and seven years since the last official episode of the series went off the air, Fox’s spin-off series, “24: Legacy” is attempting to breathe new life into the overcrowded and often overdone genre of television political thrillers.
I’ll deny it if you ever bring it up in conversation, but the truth is, I have a pretty large obsession with romance novels. My Kindle is nearly bursting with them. It’s something about those inevitable plot points full of grand gestures and just a bit of conflict that put a smile on my face, even when the world is literally crumbling around me. Marking his first venture into producing, Shemar Moore’s newest film “The Bounce Back” felt exactly like returning to a favorite romance book.
As a child, like most children I presume, I did not think of my parents as real people. They acted instead as my comforters and my providers, the people I stretched out my hands towards when I needed something. I was nearly out of the house before I considered what they might have given up; what dreams they may have sacrificed or brushed aside in the 60’s, the ’70s and ‘80s to provide my sister and myself with the best life that they could. For us, they moved through life often joyful but at times enraged; continually propping up a marriage that was long past its expiration date. Though I lived in their story with them, for the first part of my life, I observed as an outsider, labeling them as who they presented themselves to be instead of who they actually were. I, their eldest child, was guilty of not really seeing them in the full scope of their humanity.
After saying goodbye to “Criminal Minds” earlier this year, actor Shemar Moore is stepping into a new role, funding and producing his first feature film, “The Bounce Back.” Moore stars alongside Nadine Velazquez and Bill Bellamy in this warm, romantic comedy about love, intimacy, and second chances. Moore recently chatted with me about his new role as a producer, what inspired him to step behind the scene, the current state of independent filmmaking and what’s next for him.
Holiday season movies are a time-honored tradition, but African American holiday season films exist in a genre of their own. From Malcolm Lee’s “The Best Man Holiday” to Preston A. Whitmore II’s “This Christmas,” the nuances of black life at the proverbial “most wonderful time of the year” have enraptured audiences for years. David E. Talbert’s latest entry “
Martin Luther King Jr. was shot dead on Dr. Maya Angelou’s 40th birthday. It was her friend Jimmy, or James Baldwin as we know and revere him, that pulled the late writer out of her devastated stupor, dragging her to a party and encouraging to tell her personal truth through the written word. Those words became her critically acclaimed autobiography, “I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings.” It was a book that would forever change the landscape of American literature, redefining what was acceptable for Black women to talk about publically. Two and a half decades later, Dr. Angelou extended that simple act of kindness when she comforted a young artist on a film set. This young man was in turmoil, nearly suffocating to death under a rage that he could not contain; we knew him as the great Tupac Shakur.
The summer I turned eighteen, my mom was diagnosed with breast cancer, a disease she would succumb to two years later. That summer, I also discovered my then-boyfriend had another girlfriend. I was spending the last summer of my “childhood” preparing to leave my home on the south side of Chicago for a brand new adventure in New York City. Desperate to begin my journey into adulthood, while also grappling with leaving behind everything I’d ever known, left me in an emotional tailspin. Unfortunately, this caused me to lash out at those closest to me. It wasn’t until I was all alone, several thousand feet in the air, my head resting against the airplane window that I began sobbing. Surrounded by hundreds of strangers, I finally surrendered to all of the emotions from the prior months that had threatened to leave me in shambles.
When I first began seeing promo materials for “Suicide Squad,” whether on subway platforms or splashed across my TV screen, I was struck by the vibrant, in-your-face nature of the trailers and posters. It was riveting in a way that films rarely are. Warner Bros. seemed to be ripping this story straight from the pages of their beloved DC comic books, bringing the infamous Task Force X to life through stunning pop-up art and vibrant letters. A highly-anticipated film, with a diverse and star-studded cast, the villain riddled “Suicide Squad” got me all the way into the theater, only to abruptly leave me hanging a mere twenty minutes into the film.