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If you need further proof that Daniel Kaluuya is one of the best of the best, might I direct you to Queen & Slim? From Black Mirror's "Fifteen Million Merits," to his Academy Award nominated performance in Get Out, his chilling work in Widows and now Queen & Slim, Kaluuya is showing off endless range. And if you're on the lookout for a rising star, Queen & Slim has you covered in that department as well because the film features a stellar lead performance from Jodie Turner-Smith. She's appeared in Nightflyers and The Neon Demon, but Queen & Slim marks her very first lead role in a feature film and she's got no trouble commanding the screen alongside Kaluuya.

They play a black man and a black woman who meet on Tinder and are on their first date. On their way home, they're pulled over by a cop and the encounter intensifies to the point that the man kills the cop in self-defense. Afraid for their lives and how their choices could be perceived, they opt to make a run for it together.

queen-and-slim
Image via Universal Pictures

With Queen & Slim hitting theaters nationwide on November 27th, I got the opportunity to sit down with Kaluuya and Turner-Smith to talk about her experience leading her first feature and his choice to become an executive producer on the film. Check out the video at the top this article to hear the duo talk about that, the questions they wish they had the nerve to ask early on in their careers, and the one thing Kaluuya's mom wishes he'd stop doing in films.

Be sure to keep an eye out for additional Queen & Slim interviews with director Melina Matsoukas and writer Lena Waithe coming soon!

Daniel Kaluuya & Jodie Turner-Smith:

  • Kaluuya on the choice to be an executive producer on Queen and Slim.
  • Turner-Smith on jumping into her first lead role in a feature film.
  • The questions they were afraid to ask early on in their careers.
  • Would you rather run a lot in a scene or eat a lot in a scene?