Thriller Horror movies with African American Female Lead
January 20, 2021 9:35 AM Subscribe
I'm contemplating a movie or book idea where the genre would fall somewhere between Thriller and Horror with the lead being a pair of African American twin females. I've seen "Ma" as an example but no other movies come to mind. Could this premise even exist elsewhere? Could it work?
Antebellum came out recently but I heard it’s terrible. Best to avoid.
Also-recent His House is great, and the leads are an African couple newly arrived in England, if that qualifies.
The HBO series Lovecraft Country has four African-American women protagonists.
posted by ejs at 10:02 AM on January 20, 2021 [7 favorites]
Also-recent His House is great, and the leads are an African couple newly arrived in England, if that qualifies.
The HBO series Lovecraft Country has four African-American women protagonists.
posted by ejs at 10:02 AM on January 20, 2021 [7 favorites]
Sweetheart from 2019 -- an interesting take on fighting for survival against a monster.
posted by edencosmic at 10:28 AM on January 20, 2021 [1 favorite]
posted by edencosmic at 10:28 AM on January 20, 2021 [1 favorite]
If you're just looking for black women in lead roles in horror to survey what's out there already, Jada Pinkett in Tales From the Crypt: Demon Knight is totally underrated.
posted by cocotine at 10:43 AM on January 20, 2021 [5 favorites]
posted by cocotine at 10:43 AM on January 20, 2021 [5 favorites]
The Girl with all the Gifts (British, not American; sci-fi/horror)
If TV is ok, there's also Homecoming season 2 (thriller) and Channel Zero series 4: The Dream Door (British horror).
posted by methroach at 12:29 PM on January 20, 2021 [3 favorites]
If TV is ok, there's also Homecoming season 2 (thriller) and Channel Zero series 4: The Dream Door (British horror).
posted by methroach at 12:29 PM on January 20, 2021 [3 favorites]
If TV is ok, there’s also the White Bear episode of season 2 of Black Mirror starring Lenora Crichlow.
CCH Pounder was also great in Tales from the Crypt: Demon Knight in a supporting role
posted by cali59 at 1:20 PM on January 20, 2021
CCH Pounder was also great in Tales from the Crypt: Demon Knight in a supporting role
posted by cali59 at 1:20 PM on January 20, 2021
Us is definitely a great example of what OP's asking about.
There's also the huge category of Blaxploitation horror, which has a number of notable African-American female leads. Ganja & Hess was already mentioned, but there's also stuff like Sugar Hill and Pam Grier in Scream Blacula Scream. And there's been a bunch of more recent movies that were callbacks to Blaxploitation horror - Spike Lee remade Ganja & Hess as Da Sweet Blood of Jesus, and there's been some throwback compilation movies like Tales from the Hood with greater or lesser representation of women.
I also gotta highlight one of my recent favourite actors, Carmen Ejogo, who was awesome in both the mediocre Rattlesnake and the very good It Comes At Night (though she wasn't really a lead in the latter.)
posted by ZaphodB at 3:31 PM on January 20, 2021
There's also the huge category of Blaxploitation horror, which has a number of notable African-American female leads. Ganja & Hess was already mentioned, but there's also stuff like Sugar Hill and Pam Grier in Scream Blacula Scream. And there's been a bunch of more recent movies that were callbacks to Blaxploitation horror - Spike Lee remade Ganja & Hess as Da Sweet Blood of Jesus, and there's been some throwback compilation movies like Tales from the Hood with greater or lesser representation of women.
I also gotta highlight one of my recent favourite actors, Carmen Ejogo, who was awesome in both the mediocre Rattlesnake and the very good It Comes At Night (though she wasn't really a lead in the latter.)
posted by ZaphodB at 3:31 PM on January 20, 2021
Not sure what you mean by "could it work," why couldn't it?
I came to recommend Homecoming season 2.
Another thought: if you're concerned about your plot idea being taken already, you may also want to look more generally into the horrors-about-twins genre, e.g., Dead Ringers.
posted by Beardman at 4:34 PM on January 20, 2021 [1 favorite]
I came to recommend Homecoming season 2.
Another thought: if you're concerned about your plot idea being taken already, you may also want to look more generally into the horrors-about-twins genre, e.g., Dead Ringers.
posted by Beardman at 4:34 PM on January 20, 2021 [1 favorite]
I really enjoyed Sweetheart because was so focused on that single character.
Have to add Aaliyah in Queen of the Damned, Lupita Nyong'o in Little Monsters, Halle Berry in Gothika and Grace Jones in Vamp.
posted by Phyllis keeps a tight rein at 5:06 PM on January 20, 2021
Have to add Aaliyah in Queen of the Damned, Lupita Nyong'o in Little Monsters, Halle Berry in Gothika and Grace Jones in Vamp.
posted by Phyllis keeps a tight rein at 5:06 PM on January 20, 2021
I just remembered another: In Fabric (British horror)
posted by methroach at 6:18 PM on January 20, 2021 [1 favorite]
posted by methroach at 6:18 PM on January 20, 2021 [1 favorite]
The short horror film Hair Wolf meets this criteria and is really great. Not sure where the full short is available.
posted by EXISTENZ IS PAUSED at 7:18 PM on January 20, 2021
posted by EXISTENZ IS PAUSED at 7:18 PM on January 20, 2021
Horror/drama in the same vein as Fatal Attraction (because this is essentially Fatal Attraction): Beyonce in Obsessed.
posted by BlueBear at 12:14 PM on January 21, 2021
posted by BlueBear at 12:14 PM on January 21, 2021
Response by poster: I've seen "Ma" as an example but no other movies come to mind. Could this premise even exist elsewhere? Could it work?
I may not have been clear. I was looking more for the horror where the African American female was the antagonist.
posted by The_imp_inimpossible at 9:10 PM on January 21, 2021
I may not have been clear. I was looking more for the horror where the African American female was the antagonist.
posted by The_imp_inimpossible at 9:10 PM on January 21, 2021
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posted by kpmcguire at 9:44 AM on January 20, 2021 [18 favorites]