Audra, please make more movies

by Cláudio Alves

With Rustin now on Netflix, cinephiles worldwide can enjoy one of the season's top Best Actor contenders. However, one shouldn't presume there's no more to George C. Wolfe's picture than Colman Domingo's spirited turn. Indeed, there's a vast pool of brilliant Black actors around him, breathing life into civil rights icons left and right. Among them, Broadway's First Lady and Tony champion Supreme stands out, the one and only Audra McDonald as Ella Baker. She's only in a couple of scenes but leaves a lasting impression, embodying strength and conveying a rich history between the activists that goes beyond the narrative's limited scope.

As of late, that's McDonald's big screen specialty, serving excellence for a scene or two, and then – poof – she's gone. Just look at her other 2023 movies…

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