The Woman King: Viola Davis says she thought about the man who sexually assaulted her while playing a warrior
Actor wrote in her memoir about the abuse she and her sisters suffered when they were young
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Viola Davis has shared that she mined traumatic experiences from her past to help her play a warrior in her latest film,The Woman King.
The movie sees Davis plays the fictionalised leader of the real-life Agojie, an elite unit of all-female warriors active in the historical kingdom of Dahomey.
In Davis’s memoir, Finding Me, which came out earlier this year, the actor wrote about how she and all her sisters were subjected to sexual assaults by relatives, babysitters and the neighbourhood “dirty old men” when they were young.
The Woman King contains a scene in a slave market, in which Davis’s Nanisca ambushes the film’s villain – General Oba of the enemy Oyo Empire – in an attempt to start a war. As she does so, a flash of terror can be seen on her face.
In a new interview with The Guardian, Davis reflected on that scene, saying: “Every time I approached Oba, I was approaching the man who sexually assaulted me. I was not just approaching the enemy.”
Speaking about her need to face her fears, she added that “the things that have taken the strongest human being down have been a traumatic memory that they could not fight through.”
Elsewhere in the interview, Davis – who won an Oscar for her role in the 2016 film Fences and has been Academy Award-nominated for her performances in three other movies – also talked about how she can use her position to change how Black women are seen.
“What is in my power to change is to show people that we are more than the stamp that people have put on dark-skinned women,” she said.
“That we are sexual, that we are desirable, that we can be smart, that we are way more expansive and our identity is not determined by your gaze. I can change that. I can change the way Black women are seen, to some extent, within the industry.”
Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days
New subscribers only. £8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled
Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days
New subscribers only. £8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled
Read The Independent’s four-star review of The Woman King here.
If you’re worried about a child, even if you’re unsure, you can contact professional counsellors at the NSPCC for help, advice and support by emailing help@nspcc.org.uk or calling 0808 800 5000. For those aged 18 or under, Childline offers free, confidential advice and support whatever your concern and whenever you need help. Call 0800 1111 or Contact Childline.