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Action Movie Shines Light On Women Warriors of Benin Republic

The Woman King is based on real-life events of The Kingdom of Dahomey, an 18th-century West African state. The "amazons" were exceptionally skillful women warriors. They inspired fear and curiosity among locals and foreigners who had come to explore and colonise the territory. Protectors of the king, the anticolonial women warriors are referred to as Agoodjies in Fon, one of Benin's many languages.

The women warriors of Dahomey's skills as combatants were admired and feared, all the more so when they were seen as transgressively emulating masculine aggression. They may have been seen as fighting as men. Yet, in the royal palace, their positions were akin to other women - wives, concubines, and enslaved women.

The movie will feature Hollywood stars Viola Davis, Lupita Nyong'o, Lashana Lynch, John Boyega, and Thuso Mbedu. The Woman King will be released in the U.S. on September 16 and in Africa on September 24, 2022.

InFocus

Collectie Stichting Nationaal Museum van Wereldculturen

A troop of Dahomey Amazons (file photo).

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