After receiving massive ‘Black Bird‘ mentions in ‘Beyond the Lights’ and having her life detailed in the Netflix documentary, ‘What Happened Miss Simone,’ Nina Simone’s legacy has reemerged into a biopic starring Zoe Saldana.
Set to release this April, Nina will follow the ‘Priestess of Soul’s’ life after her exile from France, showcasing her troubled reputation, alcoholism, and determination to get back into the spotlight.
Despite the powerful depiction of one of the Civil Right’s Movement most influential forces, controversy swarms around Saldana’s appearance. ‘The Guardian’ asserts that critics have taken shots at Saldana’s lighter complexion and Hispanic roots, suggesting that the role has been “awkwardly miscast” due to her prosthetic nose and darkened skin; some have insinuated that Saldana was depicting blackface.
Simone’s estate isn’t too pleased with the casting either. When Saldana first received the role in 2012, daughter Simone Kelly wrote “I love Zoe Saldana, we all love Zoe… From Avatar to Colombiana, I’ve seen those movies a few times. But not every project is for everybody. And I know what my mother would think. I just don’t get it.”
Kelly’s discontent of Saldana’s casting led to her suggesting ‘HTGAWM’s’ Viola Davis and ‘Diary of a Mad Black Woman’s’ Kimberly Elise, women who exhibit features as strong as her mother’s.
“My mother was raised at a time when she was told her nose was too wide, her skin was too dark,” Kelly said in her interview with New York Times. “Appearance-wise, this is not the best choice.”
To add more fuel to the fire, Nina Simone’s estate recently blasted Saldana on the Twitter, telling her to “Keep Nina’s name out of mouth [for] the rest of her life.”
As a response to the Simone’s estate, Saldana uploaded the poster to movie on Instagram, leaving it captionless.
Since landing the role, Saldana has continuously combated critics. ‘The Guardian‘ noted that during her 2014 interview with HipHollywood, the ‘Avatar’ actress explained her decision by stating that she “knows who she is” and “she knows what Nina Simone means to her.” “It doesn’t matter how much backlash I will get for it,” Saldana told Allure in 2013. “I will honor and respect my black community because that’s who I am.”
Check out the trailer below to see Zoe Saldana in Nina.
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