Regina King and ‘Shirley’ Cast Shine at Netflix’s Premiere Event for the Biopic

Earlier this week, the cast of “SHIRLEY”, starring Regina King, gathered in the heart of Hollywood for the film’s premiere event. The event was hosted by Netflix to celebrate the biopic, which chronicles the life of the late Shirley Chisholm and her making history in 1972 as the first Black woman to run for US president.

King stunned on the red carpet alongside her sister Reina King and castmates including Lucas Hedges, Christina Jackson and Brian Stokes Mitchell. Additionally, custom paintings were on display from five artists from the Black Girl Art Show (Ija Charles, Faith Hudgens, Keila Strong, Brianna Pippens and Simone Agoussoye). See below for key moments from the star-studded premiere.

While on the red carpet, King and Reina provided a glimpse into the 15-year journey that went into making this film — which included changing direction in writers and bringing producers Sonya Winton and Jonathan Kidd on board. “That was all for the betterment of this final product when we came out because they kind of helped us. Sonya Winton and Jonathan Kidd kind of helped us with the research and just finding ways for us to access more information because there is not a lot of information,” King said in an interview with Entertainment Tonight.

In the midst of this process, she added that “life life-ing” contributed to the film’s delay. This included sudden passing of her son, Ian Alexander Jr., in January 2022. However, King made it her mission to complete the film. “I know Ian would have felt like if I didn’t finish something because of a choice that he needed to make, then I wasn’t honoring him,” Regina said in a recent interview with Harper’s Bazaar. “We all landed at the finish line on Ian’s wings. He guided us there.”

Ultimately, the road to making this movie paid off as the movie will be available on Netflix on March 22. Watch the trailer for “SHIRLEY” as it captures the life and legacy of the civil rights activist and political icon.