In 2018, Regina King was a Supporting Actress victor at the Oscars for If Beale Street Could Talk. Her latest project, at least on paper, appears to be another hopeful. In the biographical drama Shirley (not to be confused with 2020’s same titled biographical drama with Elisabeth Moss), King portrays Shirley Chisholm, the first African-American woman to run for President in 1972. Depicting that time in her life, John Ridley (an Academy winner for penning 2013’s 12 Years a Slave) directs with a supporting cast including the late Lance Reddick, Terrence Howard, Lucas Hedges, Brian Stokes Mitchell, and André Holland. The film is out in limited release this weekend before its March 22nd Netflix premiere.
Early reviews are mostly complimentary while none are really raves. The RT score is 78%. Any thoughts of this being a BP contender can go away (the release date kind of clued us into that). Unsurprisingly, King is being highly praised. I just question whether this will be in the minds of voters several months down the road. Netflix will need to keep her busy on the campaign trail for any possibility of a second nom. My Oscar Prediction posts will continue…