From the cultural phenomenon of Black Panther, to the rise of new Netflix bingeworthy series like On My Block, 2018 was a news-making year! To sum it all up, we’ve compiled the top stories of 2018 on Shadow and Act. 

These were the most-read stories by the Shadow and Act community:


10.  Viola Davis, Lupita Nyong’o To Star As Mother And Daughter ‘The Woman King’ — True Story of Dahomey Amazon Warriors

Hot on the heels of Black Panther, a huge package was announced in March, starring Viola Davis and Lupita Nyong’o.  They will star in The Woman King, which is “the powerful true story of an extraordinary mother-daughter relationship.” TriStar owns the worldwide rights to the film.

9. ‘Black Panther’ Will Be The First Film Released In Saudi Arabia In 35 Years, Breaking Country’s Ban On Cinema

Black Panther was the first film released in Saudi Arabia in 35 years, released by Disney and its distribution partner in the Middle East, Italia Film. Movie theaters were banned in the early 1980s once the country adopted ultra-conservative standards in 1979. AMC wants to open 40 cinemas in Saudi Arabia in 5 years and 100 by 2030.

8. OWN Cancels ‘Love Is ___’ Amid Graphic Domestic Violence Allegations Against Salim Akil

After initially renewing it for a second season, OWN canceled series Love Is __ in light of the graphic domestic violence allegations against co-creator Salim Akil.

7.  Fans Call For This ‘On My Block’ Role To Be Recast After Actress’ Pro-Trump Tweets Surface

Netflix’s coming-of-age series, On My Block, has received nearly universal acclaim from critics upon its release, including from us here at Shadow and Act. However, the fans of the series took the show to task, calling for a role portrayed by actress Ronni Hawk to be recast after alleged tweets surfaced on social media showing the actress’s support of Donald Trump. The actress would later address the tweets in an apology of sorts. The series’ second season premieres in 2019 and it not entirely clear if Hawk is still a part of the cast.

6. ‘Green Book’ Is ‘Full of Lies’: Dr. Don Shirley’s Family Speaks Out

Right before the controversial new Peter Farrelly film, Green Book, hit theaters family members of the Black music prodigy, Dr. Don Shirley, who is featured in the film, spoke out against his portrayal on NPR’s 1A Movie Club. Shadow and Act managing editor, Brooke Obie was among the guests and said “I think to consistently see our stories and our Black icons filtered through the lens of a racist white person like Tony Lip does nothing to advance the understanding of Black history and only serves to perpetuate white supremacy.”

5. What Marvel Underestimated About T’Challa, The Black Panther

If Marvel knew what they know now what they did back then (that Black Panther would be a massive success), would T’Challa and Wakanda be featured more prominently in Avengers: Infinity War? Monique Jones wrote for Shadow and Act, ” I don’t know the inner workings of how the MCU coordinates scripts, if they do at all, but if there was a time to coordinate and allow the screenwriters for Black Panther and Infinity War to peek over each other’s shoulders, this would have been it. Does it make sense for T’Challa to die and be resurrected in Black Panther only for him to die meaninglessly in Infinity War?”

4. J.C. And Torres Are Back! ABC To Reboot ‘New York Undercover’

Since everything is being rebooted now, of course a New York Undercover reboot would be announced! The reboot of the show is set to be written by Hand of God creator Ben Watkins. For those unfamiliar, New York Undercover ran for four seasons from 1994 to 1998. The show starred Malik Yoba and Michael DeLorenzo as Det. J.C. Williams and Det. Eddie Torres, two police officers in New York City’s Fourth Precinct. Created by Law & Order scribe Dick Wolf, the show was the first cop drama on American television to have two people of color in leading roles. The project currently has a pilot order at ABC for the 2019-20 television season.

3. 9 Sitcoms Representing Today’s America To Watch Instead Of ‘Roseanne’

Before Roseanne was canceled and the revival was achieving great success somehow, Shadow and Act put together of sitcoms  that represent today’s America exceptionally better than the “both sides” conversation Roseanne was attempting present.

2.  Jordan Peele on the Golden Globes classifying ‘Get Out’ as a comedy: “What the movie is about is not funny”

A ton of dialogue occurred over Get Out being placed in the comedy category instead of the drama category for the 2018 Golden Globes. While it probably increased the film’s chances to win, Jordan Peele wasn’t said this highlighted a bigger problem. “The problem is, it’s not a movie that can really be put into a genre box. Originally, I set out to make a horror movie. I ended up showing it to people and hearing, you know, it doesn’t even feel like horror. It’s in this thriller world. So it was a social thriller. What the movie is about is not funny. I’ve had many black people come up to me and say, ‘man, this is the movie we’ve been talking about for a while and you did it.’ That’s a very powerful thing. For that to be put in a smaller box than it deserves is where the controversy comes from.”

1. In Defense Of Erik Killmonger And The Forgotten Children of Wakanda

Shadow and Act published one of the first, in-depth takes on the cultural opus, Black Panther. This take reads, “Don’t get me wrong; Wakanda’s tradition is reasonable. Europeans have robbed Africa of its people, its resources, its land and its culture for generations. It makes sense for Wakanda to put up an invisible shield, play on the world’s Anti-African racism and protect itself from white ravagers without having to spare any one of their lives in battle. But, there is a cost. Killmonger and the forgotten children paid that cost. Killmonger simply came to collect their due.”

 

READ MORE:

Who Run The World? New Study Says Women-Led Films Outperform Male-Led Films

These Are The Most-Googled Films, TV Shows And Stars Of 2018

Hella Opportunities: Issa Rae’s ColorCreative Inks Deal With Columbia Pictures To Produce Projects From Diverse Screenwriters