Starz has developed a new drama series, “Queen Nzinga,” starring Yetide Badaki, and produced by 50 Cent, Mo Adubu, and Steven S. Deknight that tells the story of an African queen named Nzinga who ruled in 17th century Angola.
50 Cent was thrilled to come on board the project. “As G-Unit Film & Television launches more premium, international productions, I couldn’t have found better partners than Mo, Yetide and Steven to help tell the incredible story of Queen Nzinga.” He even posted a photo of Badaki on Instagram saying, “I got some heat 🔥Nzinga🔥is no joke. you will see, i’m focused GLG🚦GreenLightGang #bransoncognac#lecheminduroi @yetide”
The show has recently come together, and everyone involved is ecstatic as the production progresses. Badaki will be executive producing as well as starring in the series. Known for “American Gods” and “This Is Us,” Badaki gushed about this new role.
“It has been a long held dream of mine to bring the story of Nzinga to the screen. Her courage, determination and passion resonated from the moment I laid eyes on historical depictions of the legendary queen,” Badaki said in a statement. “I am thrilled by Starz’s continued commitment to much needed stories about and by historically excluded voices and the deeply talented team being built to share this epic narrative with the world.”
Adubu runs the Nigerian media company EbonyLife and has expressed that this has been a passion project of hers as well. “The continent of Africa has a treasure trove of stories that are yet to be told. “Queen Nzinga” is a story that I have wanted to tell for a long time, so when EbonyLife Studios finally found a home for this project at Starz and Lionsgate, it was a dream come true,” Adubu said. “We are happy to be at the forefront of forging these new partnerships with such an incredible team of creatives, because it is truly about sharing our local stories with a global audience — stories that are historical, authentic, and progressive.”
Now all the series needs is a showrunner.
“Queen Nzinga” isn’t the only project 50 Cent is involved in of late. He recently revealed that he is developing Snoop Dogg’s murder trial into a the second installment of his anthology series on Starz called “A Moment in Time,” calling it “Murder Was the Case.”
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