Alice (Keke Palmer) yearns for freedom as an enslaved person on a rural Georgia plantation. After a violent clash with its brutal and disturbed owner, Paul (Jonny Lee Miller), she flees through the neighboring woods and stumbles onto the unfamiliar sight of a highway, soon discovering the year is actually 1973. Rescued on the roadside by a disillusioned political activist named Frank (Common), Alice quickly comprehends the lies that have kept her in bondage and the promise of Black liberation. Inspired by true events, Alice is a modern empowerment story tracing Alice’s journey through the post-Civil Rights Era American South.

Palmer, who also executive produces the film, gave a statement about the film’s message in 2020.

“So many films that depict this time in our history are rooted in [the] victimization of the black female lead,” she said. “This story is the opposite and that’s what attracted me to Krystin’s perspective. It tackles the harsh realities of slavery and white supremacy while also offering inspiration and vindication through the story of Alice’s journey. I don’t want anyone to leave the theater feeling debilitated, I want them to feel empowered.”

Ver Linden also said, “Black Power is giving power to people who have not had power to determine their destiny. Huey Newton’s resounding quote has been affixed on my corkboard for as long as I can remember picking up a pen to write. Those words echo every creative endeavor that I’ve undergone, so when I read about the true story of a woman who escaped the confines of a self-proclaimed plantation, becomes radicalized and seeks out her oppressor… It spoke to me on a very deep, undeniable level. Keke is a force to be reckoned with. Her talent, truth, strength and depth are beyond words and measure… A virtuoso of Keke’s caliber is a genuine dream to work with.”