It’s about time we start recognizing how great Ruth Negga is. The star of “Loving” and the recent Sundance film “Passing” has been doing consistently good work since she starred in the cult TV series “Misfits,” but she hasn’t really had a star vehicle until now. Ruth Negga is now set to play the legendary actress, singer, civil rights activist and French Resistance agent Josephine Baker in the new limited series “Josephine.”
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According to Deadline, ABC Signature is developing “Josephine” with Negga attached to star as the titular Josephine Baker, as well as executive produce the project. The series comes from writer Dee Harris-Lawrence and director Millicent Shelton, who will executive produce alongside LeBron James and Maverick Carter‘s The Springhill Company.
Baker’s career started at the age of 15, before she became the first Black woman to star in a major motion picture in 1927 with “Siren of the Tropics.” At age 19 she moved to France where she became one of the most popular and highest-paid performers in Europe. During World War II, she devoted herself to work for the French Resistance, and spent the ’50s and ’60s fighting segregation and racism in the U.S., refusing to perform for segregated audiences in the states.
Deadline describes the series as “a raw and unflinching look at the force of nature that was Josephine Baker, the biggest Black female artist of her time. From international superstar and decorated WWII spy, to civil rights activist and flawed mother, ‘Josephine’ delves into the raw talent, sexual fluidity, struggles and bold life of an icon.”
Honestly, it’s shocking it’s taken this long for a TV show based on Josephine Baker’s life to be made. Add Ruth Negga and you instantly have a must-watch.