“The Other Black Girl” is here! The latest Hulu original has hit the streaming service just in time for a fall weekend binge, and we’re breaking down what you need to know about the latest series that has everyone talking.
A chilling adaptation
Like many of the most gripping dramas hitting streaming services, the brand-new series is based on a popular novel of the same name. The debut book from Zakiya Dalila Harris enjoyed positive reviews at the time of its release, becoming an instant New York Times bestseller in 2021.
Like the successful tale that came before it, “The Other Black Girl” follows Nella, an editorial assistant at Wagner Books, who finds herself exhausted and fed up with being the only Black girl at the company…that is, until Hazel is hired. “But as Hazel’s star begins to rise, Nella spirals out and discovers something sinister is going on at the company,” the official synopsis reads.
Bright stars
Like the novel, the series rests on the dynamic between Nella and Hazel, and Hulu found the perfect actors to bring these characters to the big screen. Newcomer Sinclair Daniel portrays Nella in the series, while “Riverdale” and “Katy Keene” alum Ashleigh Murray plays Hazel.
While the SAG-AFTRA strike prevents both stars from promoting any projects, Daniel took to Instagram last fall when the cast was announced for the series, writing, “I don’t have the words!!! Feeling so profoundly grateful!! It’s only day 1 and I’m already having the most fun ever.”
A stacked supporting cast joins Daniel and Murray as well, including “The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills” and “The Jamie Foxx Show” star Garcelle Beauvais, Bellamy Young (“Scandal”), Eric McCormack (“Will & Grace”), Hunter Parrish (“Weeds”) and Brittany Adebumola.
The creative team
Zakiya Dalila Harris developed the series herself, alongside “Parks and Recreation” and “#BlackAF” star Rashida Jones. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly earlier this year, Harris opened up about adapting her novel for the screen, referring to it as “the hardest creative challenge” she has taken on.
“It was also the most rewarding, as it allowed me to see all the ways my original idea could not only be expanded upon, but reimagined for a visual medium,” Harris continued. “This show reflects a blend of many exciting new perspectives that include Rashida Jones, Jordan Reddout, and Gus Hickey, and this story is all the better for it!”
Fans may be familiar with Reddout and Hickey, who wrote on shows like “Grown-ish,” “Mixed-ish” and ABC’s 2015 “The Muppets” revival.
Expect to see
Already described as “brilliant” and “deliciously unhinged” by some critics, the series, in addition to being a scathing satire on workplace dynamics, race and misogyny, it’s also infused with horror elements à la Jordan Peele, just in time for spooky season.
All of “The Other Black Girl” is available to watch now on Hulu.
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