It has been three days since Viola Davis-starring tribal movie The Woman King, hit theaters. And it already received a total grossing of $19 million last weekend at the box office ($6.8 million on Friday, $7.15 million on Saturday and $5 million on Sunday). Sony Pictures predicted $12 million for their opening weekend.
The film, written by Dana Stevens, takes place in the 1800s and tells the tale of an all-female tribe of warriors called the Agojie who train to protect the African Kingdom of Dahomey. The Woman King cost $50 million.
In addition to exceeding box sales expectations, CinemaScore graded The Woman King with an A-plus rating, which they posted on Twitter while congratulating Davis, Sony Pictures, and the movie’s cast and crew. The film obtained a 99% audience score and a 95% Tomatometer score on Rotten Tomatoes, along with rave reviews.
We hit theaters to poll @WomanKingMovie and audiences gave it an A+! Congrats to @violadavis, @SonyPictures, and the rest of the cast and crew! Will you be catching this one? #CinemaScore pic.twitter.com/Pqnwyr84gH
— CinemaScore (@CinemaScore) September 17, 2022
Despite the movie’s popularity, a #BOYCOTTWOMANKING has surfaced on social media from most Black people because the real King of Benin and African Dahomey women soldiers’ history showed they participated in the transatlantic slave trade—their source of income.
A YouTuber named Tonetalks kicked off the boycott by bringing attention to the Dahomey people’s actual history—that they were involved in the slave trade. While Tonetalks is correct about their involvement, one thing to note is that Dahomey’s economy wasn’t entirely dependent on the slave trade. Palm oil was the primary source to boost their economy. Dahomey was bad at business (specifically when participating in the slave trade), causing their slave ports to drop by 70%.
There has been speculation that after learning about Dahomey’s true history, actress Lupita Nyong’o dropped from doing the film, which she was to star in alongside Davis. However, that has not been confirmed.
Lupita Nyong’o dropped out of #TheWomanKing film after she learned the truth about the African slave traders called the #DahomeyWarriors. Meanwhile, detached Viola Davis took the L. #BOYCOTTTHEWOMANKING pic.twitter.com/KYEwsQJUHm
— HarrietEve9 (@HarrietEve9) September 17, 2022
