Janelle Monáe horror flick ‘Antebellum’ hits VOD next month

Given the pandemic, a theatrical release was scrapped for an on-demand rollout on September 18th.

Antebellum Janelle Monáe thegrio.com

It looks like we’ll finally get to see Janelle Monáe starring in the highly-anticipated horror film, Antebellum, next month. 

The film that was slated to hit theaters in August will be released on VOD in September thanks to the ongoing pandemic. 

Read More: Janelle Monáe says filming ‘Antebellum’ on plantation was ‘triggering’

Viewers can rent the flick, written and directed by Gerard Bush and Christopher Renz for $19.99 on September 18, but fans across the pond can see it in some international movie theaters. 

Janelle Monae
Janelle Monáe attends the 51st NAACP Image Awards, Presented by BET, at Pasadena Civic Auditorium on February 22, 2020 in Pasadena, California. (Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images)

“While the theatrical experience will always be the heart of our business, we are thrilled that we are able to seize the opportunity to match Gerard and Chris’s urgent and immediate film with a release strategy befitting this moment of extraordinary change,” Lionsgate Motion Pictures Group chairman Joe Drake said in a statement. 

“Gerard and Chris are storytellers whose work beats with authenticity — not only will this film entertain and thrill audiences worldwide, but spark a discussion about our current world.”

In Antebellum, Monáe plays an author transported back to slavery, forced to face the horrifying truth of her new reality. The all-star cast includes Gabourey Sidibe, Eric Lange, Jena Malone, Jack Huston, and Kiersey Clemons.

“While we designed ‘Antebellum’ to be consumed as a communal experience in the theater, we are thrilled by the unique opportunity we have to pivot to a different kind of communal moment in our culture,” Bush and Renz said in a statement.

Read More: See Daniel Kaluuya as Fred Hampton in first ‘Judas and the Black Messiah’ trailer

“As we face the realities of systemic racism in our country, which have crescendoed to this current inflection point in 2020, we understand how imperative it is to bring ‘Antebellum’ to the broadest audience possible, while also prioritizing health and safety. It is our ardent hope that by sharing our film widely, both nationally and internationally, we will transform the moviegoing experience from home into a true event.”

Watch the trailer below:

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