Thanksgiving weekend was full of great food and time spent with family, and it would seem as though some of the quality time was spent gathering around a TV and watching some Netflix. This year’s Thanksgiving feasts seemed to feature some serious Black talent, because Halle Berry, Dwayne Johnson, and Kevin Hart all found themselves on Netflix’s Top 10 list this holiday weekend and they remain trending on the streaming platform now that the weekend is over - talk about some Black excellence.
Kevin Hart’s True Story rose to #1 on Netflix’s Top 10 list, and it remains in the top spot at the time of this article’s publishing. Hart’s seemingly autobiographical (you know, except for the main murderous component) limited series also stars another iconic Black actor: Blade star Wesley Snipes plays Hart’s character’s brother.
Halle Berry is still standing strong at #2 after her directorial debut Bruised was recently released to Netflix on November 17th. Berry also stars in the Netflix original movie as a disgraced MMA fighter who steps back into the rings and has to balance a new type of personal life with the fighting career she is trying to redeem. Bruised features a diverse cast along with some talented faces fresh to film.
And then we have Dwayne Johnson, who should be pretty used to putting out successful films this year. His most recent release Red Notice puts him opposite stars Gal Gadot and Ryan Reynolds, a trio of super actors who definitely demand to win at the box office. The Netflix equivalent of that is the Top 10 List, which Red Notice has appeared on ever since its release at the beginning of the month. The action flick grabbed the #5 spot this Thanksgiving weekend, and is still holding the #6 spot at the time of this publishing.
If there’s one thing that Netflix does right, it’s their original series and movies, and the streaming platform is getting more and more diverse in their efforts to offer quality representation in their content. The fact that 3 originals that have a place on the Top 10 list are led by Black actors is a testament to both the representation on the platform and the talent of actors.
Of course, it definitely helps that Kevin Hart, Dwayne Johnson, and Halle Berry are all household names. Hart and Johnson being wildly busy in Hollywood, they continue putting out popular films and series, sometimes even together. Berry, though, was at peak popularity in the early 2000’s. She’s back seemingly better than ever and has 2 films coming out next year; Moonfall will release in theaters in just a few months on February 4th.
Netflix seems to be ahead of the curve on popular originals that have quality representation, and this Thanksgiving weekend there was some serious Black excellence happening on the streaming platform that seems to be still going on into the week. There’s plenty of great content left to come this year on the platform, and you can check out our list of shows and films dropping to Netflix this December, and it’s not without some more diverse content!
