Y’all, we’re at the halfway mark and I’m going to be honest, it’s getting rough. I’m on a 30-day free trial of Shudder thanks to Cinemasins and I thought I was going to find some more films. Nah. Even though it’s a streaming platform with a vast variety of new and old, independent and mainstream Horror movies, still ain’t no leading Black women. The same platform that produced the highly-recommended documentary, Horror Noire, has failed to give me a thumbnail or cover art of a scary story with a final girl that possess melanin.
ONWARD TO WEEK 3!
Last year, I challenged myself to find 31 movies that starred Black Women. My God! It was a struggle, but I completed the task. Unfortunately, I had to cheat and put some Dramas and Thrillers on the list to make it to 31, but I found 31 movies that prominently featured Black actresses in main roles instead of just the side or background character that doesn’t add anything to the scary movie. To no one’s surprise, Black faces are still not the main features of several tales in the frightening genre; I dare you to check the Horror section on any streaming platform and find a female protagonist with some melanin on the thumbnail. I’ll wait. The comment section is open to notify me of your findings in this scavenger hunt.
For the ones that don’t want to embark on that journey of disappointment, enjoy this weekly round-up to in honor of the scariest day of the scariest year and let’s celebrate films that have starred beautiful Black women in spooky situations.