Nigeria and African media mogul, Mo Abudu, is in the news again, and as usual, for all the good reasons, as she joins forces with American rapper turned movie producer, Curtis Jackson ’50Cent’ for a new TV series, titled Queen Nzinga.
The good news which was shared by the Ebonylife owner, and Nollywood producer, and 50cent on Thursday, will see American Gods’ Yetide Badaki staring in the main role of the TV series set on the life of African Warrior, Queen Nzinga.
According to the report by Deadline, Badaki will executive produce Queen Nzinga alongside Curtis ’50 Cent’ Jackson, Spartacus creator Steven S. DeKnight and Mo Abudu.
Queen Nzinga takes place in 17th century Angola and follows her transformation from an innocent princess into a fearless warrior queen who rages a ferocious 40-year guerrilla war against the kingdom’s formidable enemies, and the cruel subjugation of her people by Portuguese slavers. Nzinga would come to sacrifice everything to defend her people’s dignity, liberty and freedom. On seizing the crown, Nzinga, the first-ever female ruler, decreed – “Call me king.”
Thrust into a kingdom ravaged by slavery, ferocious tribal wars and ruthless male power struggles, Nzinga’s journey is thwart with danger at every turn. She faces a brutal family blood-bath, ferocious battles intertwined with deceptive truces, hair-raising escapes, and depraved enemies. With every part of her that she sheds or is stolen from her, she moves one step closer to realizing her dream of freedom and peace for her people.
A search for a showrunner is currently underway. The series is produced by Lionsgate Television.
“It has been a long held dream of mine to bring the story of Nzinga to the screen. Her courage, determination and passion resonated from the moment I laid eyes on historical depictions of the legendary queen,” said Badaki. “I am thrilled by Starz’ continued commitment to much needed stories about and by historically excluded voices and the deeply talented team being built to share this epic narrative with the world.”
Abudu added, “The continent of Africa has a treasure trove of stories that are yet to be told. Queen Nzingha is a story that I have wanted to tell for a long time, so when EbonyLife Studios finally found a home for this project at Starz and Lionsgate, it was a dream come true. We are happy to be at the forefront of forging these new partnerships with such an incredible team of creatives, because it is truly about sharing our local stories with a global audience – stories that are historical, authentic and progressive.”
Jackson said, “As G-Unit Film & Television launches more premium, international productions, I couldn’t have found better partners than Mo, Yetide and Steven to help tell the incredible story of Queen Nzinga.”
Jackson is represented by APA and attorneys Eric Feig and Steven Savva. Badaki is repped by Innovative Artists.
Queen Nzinga The TV Series And Mo Abudu’s Reactions:
Mo Abudue had also taken to her official social media handle on Thursday 16th December 2021, to share the good news, where she said:
“Hello beautiful people
I am pleased to share some more GOOD NEWS with you on another EBONYLIFE STUDIOS partnership with a major Hollywood studio.
Dear Karen Bailey, thank you so much for uniting us all on this project .
The continent of Africa has a treasure trove of stories that are yet to be told. Queen Nzinga is a story that I have wanted to tell for a long time.
This project is also special for us as it comes in the wake of us opening EBONYLIFE USA LLC in Los Angeles.
I said it before and I am saying it again, “as Africans, we should see ourselves as world citizens and our storytelling, locations and networks should extend to every corner of the globe.”
Thank you Hollywood Reporter and Deadline for sharing the news
To EBONYLIFE we move with love,” she said.