The Woman King director Gina Prince-Blythewood still can’t get over the fact that Academy voters didn’t care for her movie, which was completely shut out of this year’s Oscar nominations despite heavy campaigning by Sony.
In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, she said many Academy members simply had no desire to see the film. She also said “systemic” and “insidious” forces were at work that conspired against her and other black female artists.
“Of course I’m disappointed. Who wouldn’t be? Especially because there was so much love for our film,” said Prince-Blythewood, referring to the movie’s box-office success.
“But the Academy made a very loud statement, and for me to stay quiet is to accept that statement. So I agreed to speak up, on behalf of Black [sic] women whose work has been dismissed in the past, is dismissed now.”
Set in the 19th century, The Woman King tells the true story of an all-female warrior group that protected the West African kingdom of Dahomey. Viola Davis stars as the group’s leader who trains her warriors to fight against encroaching European slave traders.
Prince-Blythewood’s interview contained no mention of the controversy surrounding the movie’s historical accuracy, particularly the decision to omit the fact that the Dahomey kingdom itself participated in the slave trade by conquering neighboring African states and enslaving their citizens, who were then sold to Western slave traders.
The glaring act of historical airbrushing has dogged the film since its release, prompting a boycott campaign.
Prince-Blythewood said Hollywood fails to give female black artists the respect they deserve.
“This is a systemic American problem, which is why this felt so insidious and large. It’s tough to enter something that’s supposed to be judged on merit, but you know it’s not a meritocracy.”
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