Janelle Monáe’s Ralph Lauren Met Gala look was giving everyone Josephine Baker vibes. Well, now we know why.
Per Deadline, the “Tightrope” singer will star as the iconic artist in the TV series De La Resistance. The project is being produced by A24 (Euphoria), alongside Monáe through their Wondaland production company.
The series focuses on “Baker’s role as a spy for the Allies during the French resistance helping defeat the Nazis, and on her experience as one of the world’s most iconic, talented and glamorous entertainers.”
This is about as close as you can get to perfect casting. Monáe will absolutely kill it as Baker. If the series is exploring various elements of the “Black Pearl’s” life, the Hidden Figures star will be able to play them all: the performer, the freedom fighter, the civil rights activist and the queer icon. Previous stage and screen adaptations have chronicled the legend’s life and career, so it would be truly fascinating to see a story that follows her work as a spy. That’s the one aspect of her life that remains somewhat of a mystery.
Monáe recently made news when they revealed that they identify as non-binary. On a recent episode of Red Table Talk, they told hosts Jada Pinkett Smith, Willow Smith, and Adrienne Banfield-Norris, “I just don’t see myself as a woman, solely. I feel all of my energy. I feel like God is so much bigger than the ‘he’ or the ‘she.’ And if I am from God, I am everything. But I will always, always stand with women. I will always stand with Black women. But I just see everything that I am, beyond the binary.”
Janelle Monáe never makes a boring project. Their art is always interesting and unique, so I can’t wait to see how they make their portrayal of Josephine Baker fresh and memorable.