EXCLUSIVE: Blockbuster hits Black Panther and The Woman King have cleared the path for Netflix to succeed with Jada Pinkett Smith-narrated docu-drama African Queens, according to the show’s exec.
Premiering this week, African Queens will first tell the story of Queen Njinga of Angola and subsequently Cleopatra in its second season. It is produced by Welcome to Earth with Will Smith indie Nutopia and Pinkett Smith and Will Smith’s Westbrook Studios.
Speaking exclusively to Deadline ahead of a London screening tonight, EP Maxine Watson, who has worked on some of Britain’s biggest factual hits, said recent blockbusters have created a landscape in which shows like African Queens can flourish. A separate Njinga drama from Starz, which is being exec produced by 50 Cent, is also in the works.
“Now is a wise time to launch as The Woman King and Wakanda Forever have made it easier for Netflix to tell this story,” she said. “We’re hoping this could inspire the next generation.”
The idea for African Queens came from Pinkett Smith and Will Smith’s daughter Willow Smith, after Willow posed the question: “Who are the African queens and why don’t we know about them?”
Watson said African Queens will go “some way towards answering that question.”
“I don’t think modern TV has even scratched the surface on these stories,” she added. “You have to ask yourself why we don’t know nearly as much about Queen Njinga as we do about, say, Queen Elizabeth I.”
Notably, Netflix has opted to open the first season with the story of Njinga before moving on to a much better known ruler, Cleopatra, in the second, while Nutopia is busy researching for future seasons should they be greenlit.
“Cleopatra was the obvious one to start with but Njinga is revered by Angolans and yet you barely know her name” added Watson. “That made her feel a really good candidate.”
Watson praised Pinkett Smith’s contribution, citing her passion for the subject and how her narration will be a draw for viewers.
Njinga was the first female ruler of Ndongo and Matamba (modern day Angola) and earned a reputation for her blend of political and diplomatic skill with military prowess.
Telling her story via docudrama involved plenty of plate-spinning, said Watson, as The Last Czars producer Nutopia aimed to be as factual as possible while ramping up the drama that comprises 80% of the show.
Pinkett Smith has previously said African Queens will “stick to the historical facts of each woman” and Linda Heywood, who wrote the book the season is based on, acted as advisor.
Watson said: “There are some accounts that talk about Njinga eating the hearts out of people’s chests or having 100 concubines but you have to take these with a pinch of salt.”
Filmed in South Africa, the drama element involved a cast of hundreds of extras and, in keeping with the show’s modus operandi, it placed diversity behind the camera at its heart.
“I had never been to Cape Town and yet my first experience on a set was seeing all these Black and brown young people doing all kinds of jobs,” added Watson. “I was so blown away. The South Africans have tried over the last five-to-10 years to change the face of African production via training schemes and courses and you can absolutely see that.”
Watson, a former BBC commissioner whose past credits include Who Do You Think You Are?, The Great Pottery Throw Down and A House Through Time, contrasted the situation with that of the UK, where she “still feels there is a reluctance” to elevate diverse candidates to roles such as EP.
“I still feel we have a long way to go until we achieve that level of representation,” she added.