Black and Blue: An Interview With Tyrese Gibson, Naomie Harris & Deon Taylor

Black and Blue, a fast-paced thriller, is an upcoming film that everyone needs to see! It focuses on several topics that are controversial, yet extremely relevant in our society today: unsolicited police shootings, corrupt police officers, and racism.

Alicia West, who is portrayed by Naomie Harris (Pirates of the Carribean, 28 Days Later, Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom), is a rookie NYPD officer that accidentally catches a dirty cop killing a drug dealer on her body cam. Immediately after the cop kills the drug dealer, he notices that Officer West witnessed the murder and shoots her. From there, the movie takes us on a rapid journey where Harris’s character is not only running from the police officers she works with, but also the community she grew up in. Once the dirty cops realized that their bullets did not kill her, they put out a cash reward for whoever could bring her in, because they needed to get rid of her body cam. While on the run, she runs into an old friend, Mouse, played by Tyrese Gibson (Fast & Furious), who originally did not want to help her find refuge but eventually works on her behalf and keeps her safe despite his community wanting her dead.

This week, I had the opportunity to interview Naomi, Tyrese and Deon Taylor (the director of the film) and ask them about why they chose to work on a movie that is surrounded by controversial topics that make many Americans of color upset. Naomi stated that her reasoning for wanting to star in Black and Blue is actually because of the hard to swallow themes that are scattered throughout the movie. She believes that this movie displays a “powerful message” and brings light to themes that are no longer popular in media. Naomie says, “We have had so many examples of police brutality and corruption, that in some respects, we are getting immune to that.” It is her belief that this movie will remind people of what is happening on our streets and motivate them to want to make a change.

When asked about what the message of the movie represents, Deon Taylor shared that he wants people to adopt the “See Something, Say Something” mentality. If you see your family member, neighbor, or even a random person on the street doing something that is incorrect or inappropriate, call them out on their wrong doings.

Black and Blue will be in theaters starting October 25 and you don’t want to miss it!