Most of us were drawn into Sleepy Hollow with its quirky premise and undeniable chemistry between the two main characters, Ichabod Crane and Abigail “Abbie” Mills. The first season took us on an adventure as they tried to navigate their shared destiny.

It didn’t matter that Ichabod was married to the witch, Katrina. We were told by AppleCare that Katrina wouldn’t be a main focus. She would be more of a supporting character. But that was a lie.

Katrina’s and Henry Noble’s storylines were elevated while Abbie’s, Jenny’s, and Captain Irving’s were drastically reduced. Katrina was supposed to be so powerful but was always in peril. Abbie once had to cast a spell that this so called powerful witch couldn’t cast. The only magic Katrina was able to cast was dying her hair an unnatural color in colonial times. Yet, it was Abbie who was sidelined.

And now Abbie is gone. Her send off was a hot mess. It was anticlimactic. They teased the relationship of Abbie and Ichabod all season long with no payoff. There was no declaration of love. And Abbie is content to give up her life for the advancement Ichabod, even though it was supposed to be their shared destiny. No fight or nothing.

We should’ve known something was up when Abbie got a promotion to the FBI. It was too good to be true. Speaking of the FBI, what’s going to happen to Danny? Jenny? Will they get phased out? Abbie was the glue that held all the characters together. With the exception of Betsy Ross, Abbie was the center of their little web. She was the heart of show, the reason a lot of us stuck around.

When they didn’t ask Orlando Jones back, we should’ve known it was the beginning of the end. And now Nicole Baharie is ready to move on. How bad were things on set that the lead is fine with leaving after only three years?

Nicole Baharie will be fine. She is a talented actor and has her whole career ahead of her. I can’t wait to see what she does next, but my soul is ready. Sleepy Hollow on the other hand won’t be fine. At this point, they’ll be lucky to match their Season Two ratings.

Will you be giving Season Four a shot if it gets renewed?

The post Abbie Mills Does Indeed Deserve Better appeared first on Films of Color.

I hate to be the one to say it, but it’s time to look at the endgame for Scandal. There’s nothing that can save it. The only thing ABC can do now is to let it die with dignity before it becomes Supernatural. Viewers are fleeing. It’s not a Black Twitter phenomenon anymore.

Shonda Rhimes once said that she saw the ending of Scandal, that it’s not an eight season show. I hope she sticks to her guns and not let ABC pressure her into more seasons. She needs to end it on her terms.

One of the biggest problems of Scandal is B613. It far outlived its usefulness. B613 became so prominent in the show, the premise got lost. Multiple seasons would focus on bringing B613 down, while Olivia and company would go episodes without “fixing,” the premise that drew us in in the first place.

Another hit for Scandal is the fact that Shonda is too loyal to her actors. There are several characters that should’ve been gone. Fitz is at the top of the list. He should’ve died when he was shot. He doesn’t do much except berate the women in his life. And now that Olitz is gone, what is he doing besides spreading his presidential STD?

Papa Pope should also be gone. I love the character and Joe Morton‘s portrayal, but he never needed to be a permanent villain. If he was going to stick around, he should’ve stayed in a recurring role as resource for Olivia, not a enemy. He seems to be on Olivia’s side right now, but that could change at the drop of a hat.

I know many people are going to disagree, but Jake also needs to get the boot. He’s never been Olivia’s main love interest. He doesn’t do anything the other characters don’t do. And it’s sad to see him chase after Olivia, when she’s always had one foot in Fitz’s bedroom. Even with Fitz out the picture, Olivia won’t allow herself to be with him. And I don’t buy him as a villain. He doesn’t pull it off well.

Scandal should end with this election. I would like to see Mellie as president, but I don’t think her presidency can save the show. Scandal has gone beyond the point where they can just go back to case of the week. None of the storylines are captivating, and you can only rely on shock value for so long. The shark they jumped over is far in the rearview mirror.

My preference would be for them to take one last season to wrap everything up, to resolve this election. Let it go out with a bang instead of it just withering.

Do you see an end in sight? When do you think it will end? When should it end?

The post It’s Time for ‘Scandal’ to Ride off into the Sunset appeared first on Films of Color.

In 2016, people are tired of whitewashed properties. We have gotten a taste of diversity and seen how successful it could be, so we are beyond the days where a white cast is needed to draw viewers. And we specifically want to tell our own stories.

However, Hollywood hasn’t made it there yet. They’re hellbent on this narrative that films starring Black people/people of color don’t do well, despite the abundance of evidence that contradicts it. We tried to tell them that this wasn’t a good idea. What did they do? They sunk $140 million into their little whitewashed film. And their return of investment? $14 million domestically for opening weekend and $5 million for their second weekend. So much for their theory that they needed a white cast to draw an audience.

How much money are they’re going to piss away on films like these before they invest in more diversity?

The post ‘Gods of Egypt’ Falls from Grace appeared first on Films of Color.

I try to keep this a space of positivity, so I haven’t brought up Nina starring Zoe Saldana as Nina Simone. But the trailer and poster came out and I can’t hold my tongue anymore.

Nina should be a precautionary tale about producing biopics. I’m not one of those people who thinks that an actor has to have a strong resemblance to their subject, but if you’re going to go that route, at least make it tasteful.

The poster is atrocious. Zoe Saldana looks like she’s in blackface. It’s painfully obvious that’s she in a lot of makeup. They tried to hard to make her look like Nina, and it just ended in disaster. If the producers wanted someone who looked like Nina, they should’ve gotten someone else.

The trailer is no better. Zoe looks bad in the trailer. The trailer was badly edited. At least I hope it was badly edited. I hope it’s not indicative of the film. It’s hard to discern what happens in the film except for a lot of drinking, smoking, and psychotic episodes.

I don’t know. It’s hard to have high hopes for this film, but it may surprise us. Maybe Zoe gives a masterful performance. What do you think of the poster and trailer?

Nina will be released in theaters April 22. Tickets are available here.

The post ‘Nina’ Trailer – Nina Simone Deserves Better appeared first on Films of Color.

Beyoncé released a new song, “Formation,” this last Saturday (Saturday before the Super Bowl) and it’s been a whirlwind ever since. The song came with a video and a Super Bowl performance. And with that came all the think pieces and criticisms. But that’s become the life of Beyoncé, one where every move is analyzed and picked apart. 

It got me thinking. I wrote about Serena Williams getting a biopic. But what about Beyoncé? It seems like every singer is getting one, dead or alive, legendary or not. It’s only a matter of time before someone sinks their hooks into Beyoncé’s life story, especially given her immense popularity and accomplishments. 

The Destiny’s Child era alone would provide enough material. It would be fun to see some of her iconic shade recreated, like the infamous luggage incident. But then there’s her meteoric rise to being the Beyoncé we know now, her evolution from “Crazy to Love” to “Drunk in Love.” Dropping surprise albums and selling out concerts in less than hour. Then there are personal stories to tell. There’s the journey she went through to start a family, culminating in the birth of Blue Ivy. You could even include the tabloids suggesting how Blue was born via surrogate. The relationship with her father. They just have to make sure to include how Keri Hilson and Keyshia Cole said something negative about Beyoncé, and their careers ended. 

I’m not sure who should play Beyoncé. It probably wouldn’t have to be a singer because I’m sure no one wants anyone to rerecord her songs, fearing they might not be able to do her justice and incur the wrath of the BeyHive and general public. Someone up and coming would be nice.

Now for someone like Beyoncé, the biopic would have to be released in theaters, if only because the BeyHive would riot otherwise. Lifetime doesn’t want those problems. 

What parts of Beyoncé’s life would you want a biopic to focus on? Who would you want to play her?

The post A Beyoncé Biopic Is Inevitable, Right? appeared first on Films of Color.

1. Generic African accents
2. Unnecessary guest stars
3. The idea that Black people can’t sell films
4. Kevin Hart
5. Lack of Black love portrayals
6. No Living Single on DVD or Netflix
7. Olitz
8. Biopics starring Chadwick Boseman
9. Remakes/Reboots
10. Sci-Fi/Fantasy with no Black people
11. Will Smith with a white (blonde) love interest
12. Award shows that don’t recognize Black people
13. Video and audio that don’t sync up
14. Whitewashing
15. Any doubt about your talent and whether you should be a filmmaker (director/writer/actor/cinematographer, etc.)

What are your 2016 resolutions, and what do you want to leave in 2015?

The post 15 Things to Leave in 2015 appeared first on Films of Color.

Yes, we have a new Black Jedi. Deal with it. It is not a white genocide. People act like Black people killed all the Jedi Knights and took over. If I remember correctly, that was a white person.

There’s been a call to boycott the new Star Wars film, stating that white people’s culture has been appropriated. Newsflash: That’s not how appropriation works. You can’t appropriate a genre. Science fiction isn’t limited to white people and neither is Star Wars.

Star Wars is filled with a  countless number of alien species, but it’s a Black person that’s unbelievable. Did all Black people decide to just stay on Earth? But it can’t be, because there are Black people in the Star Wars universe.

The leader of the Jedi council was a tiny green creature. I’m no expert, but I’m sure green alien does not equal white. Not to mention there’s Mace Windu, a Black Jedi Knight on the council. The Jedi Council is more diverse than our senate, unless you’re talking about women, but that’s another story.

People can boycott Star Wars all they want to, but it’s not going to make a difference. Theaters have already sold out on opening day, and we’re still two months away.

Star Wars: The Force Awakens, starring John Boyega, opens in theaters December 18, 2015. Tickets are available here. Check out the trailer below.

The post Having a Black Jedi Will Not Kill Anyone appeared first on Films of Color.

I wasn’t going to discuss War Room, but after its unexpected popularity and actually seeing it, I felt the need to say something. We all know that films are fiction, but I think it bears repeating: War Room is fiction.

On the surface, War Room seems to have a good message for Christians and those who practice similar religions: pray and have faith, and anything is possible. Indeed, there is nothing wrong with the message itself, but in this case, it can dangerous.

The whole premise of War Room is there’s this marriage that’s on the brink of dissolution. All the couple does is fight. They ignore their daughter. But that is all taken care of when a mystical old lady comes in and fixes their marriage with the power of prayer.

There are a couple of things wrong with this. Instead of working on her marriage, the main character takes a passive role and leaves it up to prayer, neglecting to work on herself or holding her husband responsible.

Speaking of her husband, there was a good chance that this relationship was going to turn into an abusive one, if it hadn’t already. There seemed to be some emotional abuse already, with even the daughter feeling the effects. So, logically the couple should’ve gotten a divorce. You would never advise someone to stay in such a negative environment.

I would be willing to overlook all of this if everyone saw this as just a film. But I personally saw that this was not the case. I was in a packed theater where most of the people acted like they were in church, and applauded how everything turned out.

Again, I must stress that War Room is just a film. Sure, if you’re of a particular faith, you’re supposed to believe that anything can happen. But just because something can happen, doesn’t mean it will. This is not an attack on anyone’s faith, but if you find yourself in this type of situation, you should not resign yourself to it and let it out of your hands. Happy endings in films don’t correlate to happy endings in real life.

The post ‘War Room’ Is Just a Film appeared first on Films of Color.

I’ll admit when discussions about Idris Elba portraying James Bond started popping up, I was excited about the possibility. I mean why not? I could easily Elba playing the iconic suave spy. But I never really put much thought into it, not until the criticisms of Elba as Bond came up. Now I’m meh on it.

The criticism of Elba has been nothing less than coded racism. Roger Moore said he’s not English enough. I guess he’s too African (because that’s a country). Anthony Horowitz said he’s too street, even though that seems to be a perfect fit for the current iteration of Bond. But “street” is synonymous with “urban” with is synonymous with “Black.”

Of course this led to the debate of the James Bond character being colorless vs being more focused on creating our own characters, a debate that most recently popped after Michael B. Jordan was cast as Johnny Storm in the Fantastic Four reboot. This is a valid debate, but I don’t think James Bond is the character to have it over.

There is no doubt in my mind that Idris Elba would be a great James Bond. He would probably be the best James Bond ever. But Elba is talented and global enough to make make another character his own, rather original or adapted. He doesn’t need to be just another name on a long list of Bond actors. I’d rather him stand alone. With each of the past Bond actors, that role ended up being their magnum opus. Being Bond is cool and all, but Elba can do better. I say pick a lesser known actor and give him (or her) a chance to shine.

If Elba doesn’t play Bond, there’s the case to be made that Bond should be Black (or another race). I’m not opposed to a Black Bond. It would be nice to see. But it’s not a cause I’m going to get behind. There are plenty of better characters to target. Although Fantastic Four was a let down, making Johnny Storm Black brought a new level of complexity to the Storm family, whether it was explored or not. The same can’t be said for Bond.

James Bond is not that great of a character. I know that statement is blasphemous to many. Women are supposed to want him. Men are supposed to want to be like him. He doesn’t really stand out from the other spies, though, like Ethan Hunt. The qualities of his that are praised are the ones that are wrong with society: womanizing, murderousness, vanity, and sociopathy to name a few. The films are seen as iconic, although the plots are forgettable, and I’ve seen the last three in the past month. That’s not to say they’re bad films. They’re very enjoyable. But they have their ups and downs.

If Idris Elba (or another Black actor) becomes James Bond, I’ll show up to the theater to see it. I’d be happy for him. If not, I won’t boycott it. It wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world. Nothing is more awful than three lily-white Peter Parkers in the span of a decade and Uncle Ben dying on a loop. Yet, we still rise. But if Bond is something Idris Elba wants, I hope he gets it.

The post Idris Elba Doesn’t Need James Bond, And Neither Do We appeared first on Films of Color.

Abbie Mills (Sleepy Hollow)

Bonnie Bennett (The Vampire Diaries)

Cam Calloway (Survivor’s Remorse)

Hakeem Lyon (Empire)

Iris West (The Flash)

James St. Patrick (Power)

John Diggle (Arrow)

Olivia Pope (Scandal)

Papa Pope (Scandal)

Rainbow Johnson (black-ish)

Straight Outta Compton will be released in theaters August 14, 2015. Tickets are available here.

The post ‘Straight Outta’: TV Edition appeared first on Films of Color.