(Trailer) ‘The Color Purple’ Stars Fantasia, Taraji P. Henson, Danielle Brooks, Halle Bailey

Oprah can’t wait for the new adaptation of The Color Purple. “To reinvent the movie at this time is to reinvent a phenomenon,” she explained. Her major film debut was as Sofia in the 1985 adaptation of Alice Walker’s 1982 Pulitzer Prize-winning novel.

“It has been a vehicle for magic and purpose in my life,” Winfrey told Vanity Fair. “I don’t know anybody who’s ever been associated with it whose life didn’t get enhanced. Everything comes from the original words of Alice Walker, which were grounded in love, really. Love of this community. Love of these people. Love of those characters. And that just gets passed on and passed on and passed on. I can’t wait to see this next evolvement, which is not attached to having done it the way we’ve always done it.”

In February 2022, Winfrey shared news of the actors and actresses who will star in the musical film. The cast features Fantasia Barrino as Celie, Colman Domingo as Mister, Taraji P. Henson as Shug Avery, Danielle Brooks as Sofia, Halle Bailey as Nettie, Corey Hawkins as Harpo, and H.E.R. as Speak.

In the first trailer below, young Celie and her sister Nettie (Phylicia Pearl Mpasi and Halle Bailey) are inseparable until Mister (Colman Domingo) comes into the picture and changes Celie’s life in unimaginable ways. Henson is also showcased as the other unstoppable force in Celie’s life, Shug Avery. However, Shug provides positivity and a sense of self-esteem for Celie as she fights to reclaim her life from Mister.

The film also stars Louis Gossett Jr. as old Mister, Ciara as older Nettie, and Barrino as older Celie. The cast also includes Aunjanue Ellis, David Alan Grier, Tamela Mann, Deon Cole, H.E.R., Danielle Brooks, and Stephen Hill. This film is the feature debut for both H.E.R. and Mpasi.

Fantasia played the role on Broadway in 2007, and Winfrey said they decided to cast her as Celie in the film because of her “rawness and vulnerability.” Also returning from a Broadway cast is Danielle Brooks, who played Sofia in the 2016 revival. 

The film is directed by Blitz Bazawule and written by Marcus Gardley, adapting the screenplay from the Broadway musical and Alice Walker’s pivotal novel of the same name. Fatima Robinson serves as choreographer. Oprah Winfrey, Quincy Jones, and the director of the original The Color Purple film, Steven Spielberg, will produce.

The Color Purple will be released in theaters on December 20, 2023.