Published in: ESSENCE, 7/10/2018
Here’s all the news you need to know:
Michael K. Williams has been cast in Ava Duvernay’s four-part Netflix drama series, Central Park Five. Williams will play Bobby McCray, the father of accused Antron McCray. The real-life teen is one of the five Harlem boys who was wrongfully convicted of raping a female jogger in Central Park in 1989 and later exonerated and awarded a $40 million settlement.
Williams is cast alongside John Leguizamo and Vera Farmiga, who will portray Raymond Santana Sr. and Manhattan Assistant District Attorney Elizabeth Lederer respectively. (Vulture)
President Trump has nominated Judge Brett Kavanaugh as his pick for the open seat on the Supreme Court. If confirmed, Kavanaugh will replace liberal-voting Justice Anthony Kennedy and shift the SCOTUS to the right. During his announcement, Trump called Kavanaugh “one of the finest and sharpest legal minds of our time,” saying he is “considered a judge’s judge and a true thought leader among his peers.” Kavanaugh will begin meeting with senators on Tuesday. (CNN)
Winston Duke is set to play late MMA fighter Kimbo Slice in forthcoming biopic, Backyard Legend. Duke, who gained instant fame for his role as M’Baku in Black Panther, will transform to become the Bahamian-born “backyard brawler who rose from homelessness to mixed martial arts fame after his brutal backyard fights drew a huge YouTube audience.” Slice died in June 2016 from heart failure and a liver mass. (Deadline)
Haitian protesters have pillaged, burned and vandalized shops in Port-au-Prince after learning of a government plan to raise fuel prices. The violent protests lasted for three days until a strike on Monday (July 9) caused the Haiti capital to shut down. The government has canceled the price increase as the protests continued. Due to the chaos, flights have been grounded and “Internet and phone lines” have been affected throughout the city. Citizens have been asked to stay inside. (NBC News)
Jada Pinkett Smith has revealed a past sex addiction on the latest episode of Red Table Talk. After guest August Alsina confessed to becoming a Percocet addict following a 2014 fall, Smith admitted to having her own vices. “When I was younger, I definitely think I had a sex addiction of some kind. Yes, that everything could be fixed by sex.” Pinkett Smith also opened up about a dependency on alcohol. (E!)