Favorite film with a black woman in the lead role?
It was recently announced that Lupita Nyong'o will be starring in the adaptation of the best-selling book Americanah (2021). While black women have made great strides over the years in the film industry, solo (not on equal footing in the lead with a man or a woman of another ethnicity) lead roles for them are still few and far between. Which film featuring a black woman in the lead role is your favorite (minimum 5 stars, 1000 votes)?
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- 23 titles
- DirectorAmma AsanteStarsGugu Mbatha-RawMatthew GoodeEmily WatsonThe biracial daughter, Dido Elizabeth Belle (Gugu Mbatha-Raw), of Royal Navy Captain Sir John Lindsay (Matthew Goode) is raised by aristocratic Great-uncle Lord William Murray, 1st Earl of Mansfield (Tom Wilkinson) in 18th century England.
- DirectorOusmane SembeneStarsMbissine Thérèse DiopAnne-Marie JelinekMomar Nar SeneA black girl from Senegal becomes a servant in France.
- DirectorJack StarrettStarsTamara DobsonBernie CaseyBrenda SykesDuring the 1970s, U.S. Special Agent Cleopatra Jones proves to be an invaluable asset to the local police forces in the war on drugs.
- DirectorJack HillStarsPam GrierBooker BradshawRobert DoQuiA nurse serves inner-city drug dealers with some vigilante justice after her sister becomes their latest victim.
- DirectorOlivier MegatonStarsZoe SaldañaMichael VartanCallum BlueA professional assassin seeks revenge for the murder of her parents.
- DirectorSteven SpielbergStarsDanny GloverWhoopi GoldbergOprah WinfreyA tale spanning forty years in the life of Celie, an African-American woman living in the South who survives incredible abuse and bigotry.
- DirectorSherry HormannStarsSoraya Omar-ScegoIdriss Abdillahi HoufanehAwa Saïd DararWaris Dirie, born 1965 in Somalia, flees at thirteen when sold to be a mans fourth wife. She works as a maid at the Somalian embassy in London, then in a McDonald's where she's discovered and becomes an international top model.
- DirectorJack HillStarsPam GrierAntonio FargasPeter BrownA vigilante takes a job as a high-class prostitute to get revenge on the mobsters who murdered her boyfriend.
- DirectorSpike LeeStarsTheresa RandleIsaiah WashingtonSpike LeeAn aspiring actress disappointed by her treatment in the movie industry turns to phone sex to make a living.
- DirectorMathieu KassovitzStarsHalle BerryPenélope CruzRobert Downey Jr.A psychiatrist awakens as a patient in a mental institution, with no memory of the murder she's accused of committing. As she tries to regain her memory, a vengeful spirit manipulates her.
- DirectorQuentin TarantinoStarsPam GrierSamuel L. JacksonRobert ForsterA flight attendant with a criminal past gets nabbed by the ATF for smuggling. Under pressure to become an informant against the illegal arms dealer she works for, she must find a way to secure her future without getting killed.
- DirectorSidney J. FurieStarsDiana RossBilly Dee WilliamsRichard PryorThe story of the troubled life and career of the legendary Jazz singer, Billie Holiday.
- DirectorWayne WangStarsQueen LatifahLL Cool JTimothy HuttonGeorgia, who leads a life full of unfulfilled desires, is left shocked when she discovers her terminal illness. Soon, she quits her job, gathers her savings and sets out on a luxurious trip to Europe.
- DirectorsBerry GordyTony RichardsonJack WormserStarsDiana RossBilly Dee WilliamsAnthony PerkinsTracy is a black girl with no financial resources who struggles to be able to afford fashion college. Her goal is to become an internationally famous fashion designer.
- DirectorDee ReesStarsAdepero OduyeKim WayansAasha DavisA Brooklyn teenager juggles conflicting identities and risks friendship, heartbreak and family in a desperate search for sexual expression.
- DirectorLee DanielsStarsGabourey SidibeMo'NiquePaula PattonIn New York City's Harlem circa 1987, an overweight, abused, illiterate teen who is pregnant with her second child is invited to enroll in an alternative school in hopes that she can re-route her life in a better direction.
- DirectorDarrell RoodtStarsWhoopi GoldbergLeleti KhumaloMiriam MakebaSouth African teenagers fight against apartheid in the Soweto Uprising.
- DirectorF. Gary GrayStarsJada Pinkett SmithQueen LatifahVivica A. FoxDesperation drives four inner-city women to bank robbery in Los Angeles, then they start mistrusting each other.
- DirectorSpike LeeStarsTracy Camilla JohnsTommy Redmond HicksJohn Canada TerrellStory of a woman and her three lovers.
- DirectorEmile ArdolinoStarsWhoopi GoldbergMaggie SmithHarvey KeitelWhen a nightclub singer is forced to take refuge from the mob in a convent, she ends up turning the convent choir into a soulful chorus complete with a Motown repertoire, until the sudden celebrity of the choir jeopardizes her identity.
- DirectorForest WhitakerStarsWhitney HoustonAngela BassettLoretta DevineBased on Terry McMillan's novel, this film follows four very different African-American women and their relationships with men.
- DirectorKim NguyenStarsRachel MwanzaAlain Lino Mic Eli BastienSerge KanyindaSomewhere in Sub-Saharan Africa, Komona, a 14-year-old girl, tells her unborn child growing inside her the story of her life since she has been at war. Everything started when she was abducted by the rebel army at the age of 12.
- DirectorBrian GibsonStarsAngela BassettLaurence FishburneRaéVen KellyThe story of singer Tina Turner's rise to stardom and how she gained the courage to break free from her abusive husband, Ike Turner.
