‘Shirley,’ a biographical drama starring Regina King, has become the fourth most-watched movie on Netflix in the US, according to FlixPatrol. The film was released on March 21, and it has quickly climbed in the charts.
Directed by Oscar-winning screenwriter John Ridley, it tells the story of Shirley Chisholm ,who, in 1968, became the first Black woman elected to Congress. The film centers mostly on her trailblazing run for the 1972 Democratic presidential nomination.
Apart from King, who also produces, the movie stars Terrence Howard, André Holland, Christina Jackson, Lucas Hedges, and the late Lance Reddick. King’s younger sister, Reina, also appears and produces.
‘Shirley’ is a personal story for Regina King in many ways
King told Elle in an interview that she and her sister, who co-produced under their banner Royal Ties, wanted to make a film about Chisholm because not many people were aware of her story.
King told the outlet that “We all know women who roll up their sleeves and are able to go toe-to-toe with men—Black women,” but “we don’t get to see them out in the storytelling space.”
However, finishing the film was a challenge after production was halted due to her son Ian’s death by suicide in January 2022 at age 26. “I know Ian would have felt like if I didn’t finish something because of a choice that he needed to make, then I wasn’t honoring him,” King told Elle. “We all landed at the finish line on Ian’s wings. He guided us there.”
What critics are saying about ‘Shirley’?
While the approach to Chisholm has divided critics, Regina King’s performance, on the other hand, has been universally praised. For example, Richard Roeper from the Chicago Sun-Times said that her performance was “filled with power, humor, warmth and grace.”
In general, several critics think the film adhered strictly to the biopic formula and doesn’t actually try to understand its subject. For example, Devika Girish from The New York Times wrote that this drama “is too content with telling rather than showing.”