If you missed The Color Purple in theaters, the movie musical will soon make its streaming debut.
The Oscar-nominated Warner Bros. film will be available on Max, starting Feb. 16.
Set in rural Georgia in the 1930s, the drama tells the story of a group of Black women who rely on their sisterhood as they deal with hardship and trauma.
Related Story: ‘The Color Purple’ Soundtrack Features Fantasia, Alicia Keys, H.E.R., Usher
Fantasia Barrino makes her feature film acting debut as Celie, who endured physical and sexual abuse at the hands of her father and later her husband Mister, played by Colman Domingo.
Barrino, who got her big break on American Idol, previously played Celie on Broadway.
Danielle Brooks co-stars as Celie’s stepdaughter Sofia, a role that earned Brooks a Tony nomination when she played Sofia on Broadway.
Taraji P. Henson plays sultry singer Shug Avery, who offers Celie support and encourages her to speak up for herself.
The cast also includes Phylicia Pearl Mpasi, Halle Bailey, Corey Hawkins, Deon Cole, David Alan Grier, Louis Gossett Jr., Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor, H.E.R., Ciara, and Jon Batiste.
Produced by Oprah Winfrey, Steven Spielberg, Scott Sanders, and Quincy Jones, the film is described as a “bold new take on the classic story of love and resilience.”
Winfrey said in the featurette for the film, “There’s nothing that’s been more important or vital to me culturally or artistically than The Color Purple. It is a solid base of spiritual and emotional power for me.”
The film is directed by Blitz Bazawule from a screenplay by Marcus Gardley.
The story is based on Alice Walker’s 1982 novel and the hit Broadway musical.
While the original movie relied heavily on the book, the latest version features song and dance numbers, inspired by the Broadway musical.
Walker’s Pulitzer Prize-winning book was first made into a 1985 feature film directed by Steven Spielberg. Whoopi Goldberg played Celie, Winfrey co-starred as Sofia, and Margaret Avery played Shug.
Goldberg has a cameo in the new movie, which arrived in theaters on Dec. 25. To date, the film has earned just over $65 million at the worldwide box office, according to The-Numbers.com.
It received an Academy Award nomination, two SAG Award nominations, 17 NAACP Image Award nominations, and was named one of the top 10 movies of 2023 by the African American Film Critics Association.
The Color Purple begins streaming Friday, Feb. 16 on Max.
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