Regina King is having a pretty great year and a half, isn’t she? Over her already-great career, she starred in numerous films and was already a household name, as an Oscar winner, when she landed the lead in “Watchmen.” However, the popularity of that show (and the awards recognition she received) opened her career up even more. And then you have her directorial debut, “One Night in Miami…” which is poised to make King an Oscar darling, only adding to her success. So, what’s she going to do next? Well, apparently, King is ready to take on an iconic historical figure in the upcoming film, “Shirley.”
According to Deadline, Regina King is set to star in and produce the upcoming film, “Shirley,” which is written and directed by John Ridley. The film, as the title alludes to, tells the story of Shirley Chisholm, the first Black woman to ever serve in US Congress. But the film isn’t set to cover Chisholm’s rise as a Congressperson. Instead, the film will follow the campaign she launched as a potential Presidential nominee for the Democratic party, which made her the first Black person to ever launch a campaign to become a major party’s Presidential candidate as well as the first woman to do so for the Democratic party.
“Shirley Chisholm’s fearless determination has been an inspiration to so many of us, and with this film we hope to inspire many generations to come,” King said. “To collaborate once again with my friend and mentor, John Ridley, and the team at Participant, makes this decade-long journey even sweeter.”
Ridley added, “Regina’s passion for bringing a complete and very human portrait of Shirley to life has been evident since literally the day we first met. I’m very thankful to both Regina and Reina for trusting me to partner in telling the story of this truly remarkable individual.”
As mentioned, the film is written and directed by John Ridley. The filmmaker is probably best known as the Oscar-winning screenwriter of “12 Years a Slave.” However, he’s also an accomplished director on film projects such as “Jimi: All Is by My Side” and the TV series, “The Godfather of Harlem” and “American Crime.”
It’s unclear when “Shirley” might be released or what studio will distribute, but with King and Ridley involved, this is definitely a film that is going to draw quite a bit of attention.
