The Women King: Inspiration, Box Office reactions and more

The Woman King has scored a surprise success after making $19 million on its opening weekend. The box office success further highlights the resilience of the movie industry as it competes with streaming services and the potential for movies that offer a positive message to audiences.

Exceeding expectations

Sony Pictures Entertainment had originally forecast that the movie would make around $12 million on the opening weekend in the United States, so the $19 million figure bodes well for the remaining theatrical run. Industry analysts predict that the movie could eventually make $100 million in North America, driven in particular by positive word-of-mouth marketing generated by the movie.

The Woman King, which was directed by Gina Prince-Bythewood and stars Viola Davis as General Nanisca, tells the true story of the Agojie, the female warriors and protectors of the African Kingdom of Dahomey, now modern-day Benin.

Inspired by African warriors

The real-life warriors, also known as the Dahomey Amazons, provided inspiration for the Dora Milaje, the elite warriors featured in the movie Black Panther. The 2018 movie, which starred the late Chadwick Boseman, demonstrated the huge appetite for a Black superhero and the popularity of a storyline involving African warriors. The movie was awarded three Oscars in 2019 and was a box office smash, grossing over $1.3 billion globally. Filmmaker Ryan Coogler made history by directing the highest-grossing movie by a Black director. This success of African topics in modern entertainment has also led to a number of online casino games inspired by movies with slot titles such as Legends of Africa and Africa Goes Wild, which capitalize on the popularity of African themes such as the warriors, culture, and magnificent wildlife of Alkebulan, the ancient name of the continent.

A critical success

The Woman King, which also features South African actress Thuso Mbedu, along with British pair Lashana Lynch and John Boyega, is set in the 1820s with the screenplay written by Dana Stevens, which was inspired by a story she wrote along with the actress and writer Maria Bello.

The movie celebrated its global premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival and the critical acclaim enjoyed by the film will certainly have contributed to the over 1.4 million moviegoers who watched the film within the first three days of release. The movie has also earned a positive response from Benin, with fans praising the movie for its tribute to the women warriors who played such an important role in Western Africa.

According to an analysis by Sony, women made up 58% of the movie audience with a similar percentage over the age of 35 and around 60% of the audience were Black. Paul Dergarabedian, the senior media analyst at Comscore, cited the positive portrayal of the warriors in the movie as one of the reasons for its popularity: “Much like Black Panther, The Woman King demonstrates that positive, culturally based stories can resonate strongly among all audiences.”

The success of The Woman King demonstrates both the resilience of the movie industry and also the appetite for further portrayals of stories and characters featuring African warriors. The box office figures should guarantee that this often overlooked area will now experience growth in the movie industry.