It’s always the right time to celebrate Black people’s accomplishments in America by looking back at their important past work and applauding the great work being done today. That work includes entertainment. In the past, we’d subsist on Black History Month programming from cable or network television, where we’d enjoy the few shows or movies that the various channels happened to license. Those offerings weren’t bad per se, but you can only watch Boomerang and Do the Right Thing so many times. In 2024, however, video streaming services serve up a buffet of licensed and original top-notch programming. There’s more space for Black content than ever before, as streaming services scramble to differentiate themselves. With that in mind, these are films and television shows we plan to watch in celebration of Black History Month.
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The 1619 ProjectYou’ve seen the articles, you’ve bought the books, you’ve witnessed the controversy. Now, the Pulitzer Prize-winning 1619 Project comes to Hulu as a streaming documentary series. Journalist Nikole Hannah-Jones and her collaborators wrote a series of essays digging deep into how slavery is inseparable from United States history. This show turns those essays into anthology-style episodes.
Abbott ElementaryQuinta Brunson’s mockumentary series, Abbott Elementary, is an award-winning comedy sensation. Set in a predominately Black and drastically underfunded Philadelphia elementary school, the show follows flawed, well-intentioned educators who do the best for their students. Stream new episodes on Hulu or revisit the older seasons on Max.
Black Art: In The Absence of LightBlack Art: In The Absence of Light is a celebration of African-American art, a film based on David Driskell’s Two Centuries of Black American Art exhibition. Veteran documentarian Sam Pollard directs this look at that pioneering exhibition and all the artists that it inspired. You can find Black Art: In The Absence of Light on Max.
BridgertonWhen Shonda Rhimes announced that she was leaving ABC—where she created Grey’s Anatomy and Scandal—to sign a $100 million deal with Netflix, it sent shockwaves throughout the entertainment industry. Bridgerton was the first show to emerge from that deal. The show stars Phoebe Dynevor and Regé-Jean Page as Daphne Bridgerton and Simon Basset, Duke of Hastings, respectively, who fall in love during Regency-era London’s high society gatherings. The spin is that Simon is Black, and this era is a racially integrated alternate reality. Think Pride and Prejudice, but with Black people. Bridgerton is based on Julia Quinn’s nine-novel book series, reads that are available on Amazon Kindle or Audible. Want more? Check out prequel spin-off Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story.
High on the Hog: How African-American Cuisine Transformed AmericaFood and culture are inextricably linked. In the culinary documentary series High on the Hog, chef and writer Stephen Satterfield explores how Black culinary traditions play a vital role in understanding Black history at large. From Texas BBQ to Carolina rice fields to recipes passed down from George Washington’s slaves, the show is as devastating as it is delicious.
I May Destroy YouCreator Michaela Coel produces, writes, co-directs, and stars in this award-nominated television series. I May Destroy You follows writer Arabella Essiedu as she seeks to write a book following her sexual assault. Coel’s own experience with sexual assault inspired the series. The entire 12-episode season is available on Max.
I’m a VirgoRevolutionary musician turned revolutionary filmmaker Boots Riley turns the superhero genre on its head with I’m A Virgo. This show introduces us to a 13-foot-tall Black teenager, played by Jharrel Jerome, and it only gets stranger and more insightful from there. Stream I’m a Virgo on Amazon Prime Video.
Judas and the Black MessiahDespite the Biblical-sounding title, this film is actually set in the 1960s. Judas and the Black Messiah dramatizes the betrayal of Black Panther Party founder Fred Hampton (Get Out, Black Panther, and Queen & Slim’s Daniel Kaluuya) by William O’Neal (Sorry To Bother You, Knives Out, and The Photograph’s LaKeith Stanfield). Indie comedy director Shaka King brings this story to life courtesy of Max.
Kizazi Moto: Fire GenerationKizazi Moto: Fire Generation is an exciting and inspirational animated anthology series highlighting up-and-coming African artists. These Afrofuturist shorts range from journeys into the spirit world to apocalyptic surfing competitions. Stream Kizazi Moto on Disney+.
Ma Rainey’s Black BottomMa Rainey’s Black Bottom is the final film appearance of Chadwick Boseman, the actor who made a name for himself playing Black historical figures in films like 42, Get on Up, and Marshall (oh, you may have also seen him in Black Panther). Viola Davis stars as the eponymous Ma Rainey, a blues singer in the 1920s who’s about to record an album with white producers. Boseman is Levee Green, the trumpeter for Ma’s band who wants to break out with his own compositions—something that the band is none too happy to hear. Director George C. Wolfe delivers this fantastic film, a movie produced by Denzel Washington and based on August Wilson’s play. You can watch Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom on Netflix.
One Night in MiamiBased on the stage play of the same name, One Night in Miami is a semi-fictional tale that sees Muhammad Ali, Jim Brown, Sam Cooke, and Malcolm X gather to celebrate Ali’s win over Sonny Liston in February, 1964. The film deals with their feelings about being successful Black men during the Civil Rights Movement. One Night in Miami is also the directorial debut of Regina King (The Boondocks, Watchmen), and she pulls amazing performances from Kingsley Ben-Adir, Eli Goree, Aldis Hodge, and Leslie Odom Jr. It’s currently available on Amazon Prime Video.
Sorry to Bother YouBoots Riley’s debut film is a leftist masterpiece that tackles not just race, but how capitalism seeks to reduce us to nothing but beasts of burden. It’s also incredibly funny, with great performances from Lakeith Stanfield, Tessa Thompson, and Danny Glover. Stream Sorry to Bother You for free on The Roku Channel.
South SideFormer Comedy Central show South Side just aired its final season on Max, so there’s never been a better time to check out this laid-back, hilarious look at Black life in working class Chicago. Officers Goodnight and Turner may be the best comedy cops of all time.
SoulPete Docter, the director of Inside Out and Up, delivers another fantastic Pixar film. Soul follows Joe Gardner (Jamie Foxx), a music teacher who dies on the day that he achieves his dream of becoming a serious jazz musician. As a soul heading to the Great Beyond, Gardner must help a cynical soul, 22, find her spark so that he can return to his body. It’s an excellent journey that deals with the meaning of life. You’ll probably cry.
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Docter is joined in the director’s chair by Kemp Powers, the first African-American director in Pixar history. In addition, musician Jon Batiste served as a consultant for the film’s many jazz performances. You can watch Soul on Disney+ right now.
Sweet Sweetback’s Baadasssss SongCriterion Channel has way too many excellently curated Black art films to list. Roots & Revolution: Reggae on Film! Harry Belafonte films! The Learning Tree by Gordon Parks. But if we have to recommend one, check out Sweet Sweetback’s Baadasssss Song, the legendary film that originated the controversial Blaxploitation genre. In fact, Criterion has an entire block of Melvin Van Peebles films.
Sylvie’s LoveSet in the late 1950s, Sylvie’s Love stars Tessa Thompson and Nnamdi Asomugha as two, young lovers. Sylvie and Robert meet in her father’s record store, but their life paths threaten to take them in different directions. Sylvie wants to be a television producer, while Robert is a bandleader in a jazz quartet. The film, written and directed by Eugene Ashe, follows their lives and their romance. It’s available on Amazon Prime Video.
The Underground RailroadThe Underground Railroad, Colson Whitehead’s incredible novel, becomes Barry Jenkins’ incredible miniseries. In a world where the Underground Railroad is a literal subterranean train, an escaped slave from the American South must contend with larger and increasingly surreal forms of oppression on the road to freedom. Stream The Underground Railroad on Amazon Prime Video.
WatchmenWatchmen by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons changed comic books forever by introducing dark maturity and psychological realism to the superhero genre. Watchmen the TV show is a sequel to the comics that retains many of its ideas and characters. However, the show’s most successful addition to the lore is its fascinating connections between the history of fake superheroes and the history of real racism. Stream Watchmen on Max.
A Wrinkle in TimeLegendary director Ava DuVernay offers her ethereal reinterpretation of Madeleine L’Engle’s classic children’s novel. Who doesn’t want to see Oprah Winfrey as a benevolent, all-powerful witch? Stream A Wrinkle in Time on Disney+.
Your Attention Please Hosted by actor Craig Robinson, Your Attention Please tells the stories of contemporary Black creators and innovators. The first episode is a woman-focused entry, featuring engineer and entrepreneur Asmau Ahmed, stunt performer Jazzy Ellis, and NFL assistant coach Jennifer King. The show is available on Hulu.Explore More Black ArtThere are more places and spaces where you can educate and entertain yourself. If you want to watch more Black art on streaming, here’s a list of the best streaming services to make that a reality. Learn how historians are doing their best to preserve Black internet culture. And if you want to hear the words of civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr., here are the services where you can find his speeches.Mike Williams contributed to this article.
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