Ghanaian filmmaker Blitz Bazawule and Oprah Winfrey unveil first trailer for ‘The Color Purple’ movie

Ghanaian musician and filmmaker Samuel “Blitz the Ambassador” Bazawule joined Oprah Winfrey, Fantasia Taylor, Taraji P. Henson, and Danielle Brooks to present the first trailer for the upcoming musical adaptation of The Color Purple.

Unveiled at the CinemaCon on Tuesday, April 25, the trailer is very much an adaptation of a Broadway musical, filled with bombast and brass. Trading Spielberg’s melodrama for lavish setpieces, the movie leans into the magical realism of the story with visual flare, jumping from time periods and characters, from swamps to nightclubs with Baz Luhrman-like energy. It really does not look anything like the original.

According to producer Oprah Winfrey, the movie “holds great personal meaning to me. When I was cast in the film, it was my first acting role, and now we’re doing a brand new version of The Color Purple, that could only happen with the perfect director, who envisioned the film like the Broadway musical, bringing in magical realism and family wholesomeness.” she said.

READ ALSO: Blitz Bazawule talks “The Scent of Burnt Flowers” and “The Color Purple” on The Daily Show

Blitz also shared his experience working on the film “I started this journey with the utmost respect and love for you and Alice Walker, whose book gave us this amazing story,” Bazawule said. “The Color Purple as a story is known and treasured all over the world because it’s about finding your voice, your family, and breaking through obstacles.”

The film’s executive producers include Alice Walker and Rebecca Walker, Kristie Macosko Krieger, with Marcus Gardley writing the screenplay.

The Warner Bros musical film includes heavy-hitting names such as Oprah Winfrey, Steven Spielberg, Scott Sanders and Quincy Jones  as producers. This project is personal for Oprah Winfrey, who starred in the 1985 drama adaptation of The Color Purple. Clearly, the actress turned media mogul is impressed with Bazawule being at the helm of the musical adaptation.

The Color Purple hit theaters on Christmas Day.