Yetide Badaki's next role will be as Queen Nzinga. Starz has announced that a drama series about the African Warrior Queen is currently being developed.
The series will take place in 17th century Angola. It is described as being based on the true story of Nzinga's 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. Badaki's previous work includes playing Bilquis in Starz's American Gods and ChiChi in NBC's This Is Us. In the press release, Badaki said:
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Badaki will also be an executive producer for the series. Mo Abudu will be an executive producer through EbonyLife Media. Abudu previously worked on 2019's Oloture (directed by Kenneth Gyang) and 2017's The Royal Hibiscus Hotel (directed by Ishaya Bako). "The continent of Africa has a treasure trove of stories that are yet to be told," said Abudu. "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."
Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson will also be an executive producer through his G-Unit Film & Television. Jackson has previously worked on the Power franchise and the series BMF, both of which air on Starz. Steven S. DeKnight will also be an executive producer. DeKnight previously worked on Spartacus and Netflix's Marvel series Daredevil. Starz's Executive Vice President of Original Programming Karen Bailey will oversee the series. Lionsgate's Courtney Mock will also oversee it.
No planned release date for Queen Nzinga has been announced. Badaki will also voice a character in Netflix's upcoming Army of the Dead: Lost Vegas animated series.
