Four years after Denzel Washington’s Oscar-winning adaptation of August Wilson’s Fences comes another filmic take on the work of the legendary playwright. Viola Davis stars as the titular blues singer in Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, coming to Netflix later this year – a music-based drama set in 1920s Chicago, with Denzel Washington back on board as producer, and George C. Wolfe on directing duties.
Speaking to Empire in the upcoming The Suicide Squad issue, Davis spoke about the continued relevance of Wilson’s work – and how a play set 100 years ago (and written in the early ‘80s) still speaks directly to today. “It’s a story of being Black in America, and having a dream,” she explains. “It’s about having vision and talent, and all the obstacles that are put in your way to keep you from attaining your dream, to keep you from that levelled playing ground. We could have done this play 100 years ago, and it would still have been relevant.”
While Davis is the star here, she shares the screen with the late, great Chadwick Boseman – playing ambitious jazz trumpeter Levee – whose sudden passing in August still remains unprocessed by the film industry and fans alike.
With Ma Rainey confirmed to contain Boseman’s final screen performance, Davis calls the film “a really fitting and beautiful curtain call” to the actor – with Boseman in a role sure to rank alongside his iconic performances as T’Challa, Thurgood Marshall, James Brown, and Jackie Robinson. “[Levee] is the story of the Black man,” explains Davis. “In my opinion, all of August’s plays are tragedies, in the same way Arthur Miller’s plays are tragedies. You see the downfall of these men and how it affects everyone in their path. Levee is fighting trauma, and he’s fighting a world that thinks he’s shit. I think Levee is probably one of the greatest characters in American theatre history.”
Read Empire’s full story on the making of Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom – including brand new interviews with Davis, Denzel Washington, and director George C. Wolfe – in the December 2020 issue, on sale Thursday 29 October. Pre-order a copy online here. Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom comes to Netflix on 18 December.