Whoopi Goldberg (70) is filming a movie for Barack (64) and Michelle Obama’s production company. The Oscar-winning actress is taking on one of the lead roles in “Women Like Us,” a comedy developed as an original Netflix film. Also set to star are Jenifer Lewis (69), Vanessa Williams (63), and Vivica A. Fox (61). Principal photography is set to begin this fall in New York City, according to Variety, the U.S. industry trade publication.
Two outfits that have never collaborated before are behind the project: Higher Ground, the media company of the former presidential couple, and Macro Film Studios from Charles D. King. Michelle Obama is on board as an executive producer, while King will serve as an executive producer for Macro.
A Weekend That Changes Everything
At the heart of the story is a woman who has just lost her husband. Her sister and her closest friends drag her to the Hamptons, precisely that weekend she would have celebrated her 30th wedding anniversary. What starts as a brief escape, according to the official synopsis, becomes a reckoning. A confrontation with grief, with the marriage, with a friendship that has carried the women through decades. And with the idea that dreams can have an expiration date.
Director Tasha Smith (55) leads the project, coming off work on Bel-Air, Survival of the Thickest, and Mayor of Kingstown. The screenplay is by Ali Kinney (“Ginny & Georgia”), with co-writing credit from Tracy Oliver, whose credits include “Girls Trip,” “Harlem,” and “The Blackening.”
15 Oscar Nominations
Macro Film Studios is no stranger to Hollywood. The studio has produced titles like “Judas and the Black Messiah,” “Fences,” and “One of Them Days,” gathering 15 Oscar nominations, with three of those nods turning into wins.
For Higher Ground, “Women Like Us” marks the next chapter in a long-running Netflix partnership. From this collaboration have already emerged “Leave the World Behind,” “American Symphony,” and “Rustin.”
In the pipeline are the series “All the Sinners Bleed” and “The Altruists,” as well as a comedy about a mother-daughter relationship with Julianne Moore. (spot)
