Kerry Washington has been tapped to act in and produce Tyler Perry’s first historical drama “Six Triple Eight,” which begins production this week at Tyler Perry Studios in Atlanta.
And Perry’s friend Oprah Winfrey will take part in the film as well. This will be her first acting role in five years. She last appeared in Ava DuVernay’s 2018 film “A Wrinkle in Time.” This will be the first time Perry has ever directed Winfrey.
Other big names set to be in the movie include “Breaking Bad” star Dean Norris, “Law & Order” veteran Sam Waterston and Oscar-winning actress Susan Sarandon, who was part of the recently canceled Fox show “Monarch,” also shot in metro Atlanta.
In an interview earlier this week with The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Perry said Winfrey came in for a single day and shot a cameo. “We wanted to do something for a long time,” he said. “I just had to find the right thing. She is not a Madea type of person. This totally worked.”
Washington will play Charity Adams Earley, the highest-ranking Black woman officer during World War II. As he was hunting for props, a man contacted him from Ohio with Earley’s actual trunk she used during World War II to keep her belongings. He will use it in the film and keep it for a future Georgia TV and film museum he plans to build at the entertainment district he is working on adjacent to his studio.
The Wrap said the ensemble cast will also feature Ebony Obsidian, Milauna Jackson, Kylie Jefferson, Shanice Shantay, Sarah Jeffery, Pepi Sonuga, Jay Reeves, Jeanté Godlock, Moriah Brown, Baadja-Lyne Odums and Gregg Sulkin.
The movie — written, directed and produced by Perry — will tell the true story of the 6888th Postal Directory Battalion, the only World War II battalion that consisted entirely of Black women. The 855 women were assigned to handle three years’ worth of undelivered letters and packages to and from U.S. soldiers. They completed the backlog in six months, half the time they were given.
Perry adapted the screenplay from an article about the battalion, written by historian Kevin M. Hymel and published in “WWII History Magazine.”
About the Author
