The screening of “The King Woman” at the Toronto Film Festival was marked by cheers and chants of “Ti amo, Viola!” and “Thanks, Viola”. The audience erupted in applause from the first time the actress appeared on screen, and that applause continued throughout the action sequences, in which Davis and her co-stars Lashana Lynch, Sheila Atim and Thuso Mbedu brandished machetes and spears.
Reflecting on audience reaction and the struggle to get a studio to film “The King Woman,” director Gina Prince-Bythewood hinted at the racism of Hollywood executives. “It still amazes me today that this film exists, for what it took to make it,” she said at the TIFF Bell Lightbox press conference.
The director said the project was turned down by an extensive list of studios and production companies. “Ninety-nine percent of the time they are white men sitting across from you and you have to convince them that your story is worthy,” Prince-Bythewood said. “It’s overwhelming to hear ‘no’ after ‘no’ after ‘we don’t get it that way.'”
For her, filming “The Woman King” was a battle in front of and behind the camera. But she, she says, “putting women of color on screen is something worth fighting for.”
American critics agreed it was worth it. After applause from the audience, the film reached the Rotten Tomatoes aggregator with 100% approval. All critics were unanimous in saying that this is an exciting and technically impressive action film.
As of this weekend, Viola Davis said she has not yet verified the repercussions.
The star told the press that she stopped following social media after being harassed by some comments. “I was very angry, but I knew I couldn’t answer because people would know it was me,” she said, then she admitted she created a fake profile to react to what she considered unfair. “Lili Washington cursed some people,” she revealed.
During the Q&A session after the premiere, Davis was asked if she expected to be nominated for yet another Oscar for her performance. She replied that her goal is not to be rewarded, but to inspire young women of color.
“I want to do to young black women what you do [Cecily] Tyson did it for me when I was 7, “he explained.” It was the physical manifestation of my dream, and it came to me through a broken television set in a rundown apartment in Central Falls, Rhode Island. What he gave me is something that cannot be quantified in words. “
Viola Davis is also a producer on the film, which she calls her “magnum opera”.
“I feel that all my life I have allowed myself to be defined by a culture. I have allowed myself to be defined by my opponents,” Davis said, addressing the festival audience. “You often allow other people to define you and, at 56, I have come to the conclusion that I can define myself.”
After this statement, the audience burst into more cheers, with more chants of “Viola!”, “Thank you, Viola” and “I love you, Viola!” The Oscar winner replied: “I love you too”.
“Many times you just allow other people to define you and at 56 I realized that I can define myself.” ❤️
wise words from @violadavis at the world premiere of Gina Prince-Bythewood (@GPBmadeit) THE KING WOMAN. # TIFF22 pic.twitter.com/VrDC8TSWP4
– TIFF (@TIFF_NET) September 10, 2022
Source: Terra
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