Shirley is a 2024 American biographical drama film written and directed by John Ridley. It depicts the 1972 presidential run of Shirley Chisholm, who was the first Black woman to be elected to the United States Congress. The film stars Regina King in the title role, alongside Lance Reddick, Lucas Hedges, Brian Stokes Mitchell, Christina Jackson, Michael Cherrie, André Holland, and Terrence Howard.
| Shirley | |
|---|---|
 Release poster | |
| Directed by | John Ridley |
| Written by | John Ridley |
| Produced by |
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| Starring |
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| Cinematography | Ramsey Nickell |
| Edited by | JoAnne Yarrow |
| Music by | Tamar-kali |
Production companies | |
| Distributed by | Netflix |
Release dates |
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Running time | 117 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Shirley had a limited theatrical release in the United States on March 15, 2024, before its streaming debut on Netflix on March 22, 2024.
Premise
Shirley Chisholm, already the first Black woman to be elected to the United States Congress, runs for president of the United States in 1972, becoming the first Black candidate to run for a major-party nomination for president and the first woman to run for the Democratic Party's nomination.
Cast
- Regina King as Shirley Chisholm
- Lance Reddick as Wesley McDonald "Mac" Holder
- Terrence Howard as Arthur Hardwick Jr.
- Lucas Hedges as Robert C. Gottlieb
- Brian Stokes Mitchell as Stanley Townsend
- Christina Jackson as Barbara Lee
- Michael Cherrie as Conrad Chisholm
- André Holland as Walter Fauntroy
- Dorian Missick as Ron Dellums
- Amirah Vann as Diahann Carroll
- W. Earl Brown as George Wallace
- Brad James as Huey P. Newton
- Reina King as Muriel St. Hill
Production
In February 2021, it was announced that a biographical film based on the life and career of Shirley Chisholm was in development, with Regina King cast in the eponymous role and John Ridley directing and writing the screenplay.[1][2]
In December 2021, Lance Reddick, Lucas Hedges, André Holland, Terrence Howard, Christina Jackson, Michael Cherrie, Dorian Missick, Amirah Vann, W. Earl Brown, and Ethan Jones Romero joined the cast.[3] Brian Stokes Mitchell, Brad James, and Regina King ultimately rounded out the cast.[4]
As of December 7, 2021, filming had begun in Cincinnati.[5]
Release
Shirley had a limited theatrical release in the United States on March 15, 2024, before its streaming debut on Netflix on March 22, 2024.[4][6]
Reception
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 73% of 71 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 6.3/10. The website's consensus reads: "Regina King does a stellar job in Shirley's title role, imbuing this fairly standard biopic with the heart and soul its subject so richly deserves."[7] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 57 out of 100, based on 20 critics, indicating "mixed or average" reviews.[8]
