Netflix has released the official trailer for African Queens: Njinga. A four-part docuseries narrated and executive produced by Jada Pinkett Smith, the series will premiere on Feb. 15. With the idea of having different seasons focus on various African rulers, the first season follows Njinga, queen of Ndongo and Matamba. The new trailer, which you can watch below, provides a sneak peek at the series and what life is like for the modern-day warrior queen.
Smith executive produces the series with Miguel Melendez, Terence Carter, and Sahara Bushue for Westbrook Studios. Jane root, Maxine Watson, and Ben Goold are also exec producing for Nutopia. Peres Owino and NneNne Iwuji served as writers.
The official synopsis for the docuseries is as follows:
From Executive Producer Jada Pinkett Smith comes a new documentary series exploring the lives of prominent and iconic African Queens. The first season will cover the life of Njinga, the complex, captivating, and fearless 17th century warrior queen of Ndongo and Matamba, in modern day Angola. The nation’s first female ruler, Njinga earned a reputation for her blend of political and diplomatic skill with military prowess and became an icon of resistance.
Jada Pinkett Smith Says These Stories Need to Be Told
"There are so many stories to be told in regard to the Black experience globally," Smith says of the importance of African Queens. "I think that it's important to tell the stories now because we can and haven't always been able to. Even though there's a lot more work to do, we're at a place now where we have the ability and the opportunity to tell stories that have been forgotten as well as the stories that are part of our everyday lives, and what a gift that is."
She continues, "It's a testament to standing on the shoulders of all of those that came before us that didn't have the opportunities that we have but were part of carving out the path for all of us to get to where we are today. African Queens is in honor of that."
In a Tudum interview, Smith also commented on the origins of the series. She says that it had gone through many machinations before getting to this point, starting with the story of Njinga. The concept started with Smith's daughter, Willow, before the two realized that it was very important to spend some time focusing on Black queens, as there are so many fascinating stories that deserve to be told.
“We don’t often get to see or hear stories about Black queens, and that was really important for me, as well as for my daughter, and just for my community to be able to know those stories because there are tons of them," she says. "The sad part is that we don’t have ready access to these historical women who were so powerful and were the backbones of African nations.”
African Queens: Njinga will start streaming on Feb. 15, 2023, on Netflix. Watch it on the Netflix app or at Netflix.com.