'Inspired by his transformation': Charmaine Bingwa reveals she didn't recognize Will Smith on 'Emancipation' set
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA: Charmaine Bingwa revealed recently that she was unable to recognize Will Smith when she first met him on the sets of their movie 'Emancipation'. In an interview, the actress, who came into light with her portrayal of a lawyer on 'The Good Fight', shared that she was excited to play Will Smith’s wife in the movie but couldn't make out whether he was for real or it someone else due to the transformation he went through for the movie. "When I first saw Will, he was so thin. He got so skinny for this role to be able to play him, and I did not recognize him. I was like, 'Where's Will Smith? This is wild.' I was so inspired by his transformation, and he's a great leader. I think we all just followed suit and committed as hard as he did," Bingwa said.
The Apple TV+ movie is directed by Antoine Fuqua and is inspired by the 1863 portrait of ‘Whipped Peter’. The portrait was of a real man’s revolt who ran away during a Union Army medical examination. The photo then became living proof of slavery’s brutality at those times, appearing first in Harper’s Weekly. Reflecting on her character in the movie, Bingwa said, "We knew she existed. But a lot of it was for me to fill in the blanks and to color her in, so to speak. I listened to a lot of narratives from enslaved people at that time, particularly women. Women had to do the same amount of physical work as the men, and then they had to come home and run the household, stitch up clothes, make sure the family was catered for, and then had to face sexual advances from their slave owners."
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Official Teaser — Emancipation
— Apple TV+ (@AppleTVPlus) October 3, 2022
Inspired by a true story, an enslaved man embarks on a perilous journey to reunite with his family. #Emancipation, directed by Antoine Fuqua and starring Will Smith, premieres in theaters December 2, streaming on Apple TV+ December 9 pic.twitter.com/sSj4o2ajw1
The 38-year-old actress told People, "I really wanted to make sure that I was able to tell as much of that story and honor Black women who are so often marginalized or forgotten completely."
The actress, who portrayed Carmen Moyo on ‘The Good Fight’, lauded how the cast of 'Emancipation' gave it their all to bring back history in its truest form. "There was an environment of, 'Let's dig deep for this one.' And so I think me and Will were both working from that space and just giving it our all," she reminisced, calling Smith "a very encouraging, beautiful soul."
When asked about 'Emancipation' being the first movie to come out after Smith’s Oscar slapgate incident, Bingwa replied, "It's been beautiful to hear Will go out and repeatedly say that, 'No matter what's happened, I just don't want my team to be punished' for his actions.” She further said, "And it speaks to his generosity that he's willing to take whatever hits on the shoulder, whatever people are saying, but he's out there for us trying to get this movie seen, and for the people that the movie is about."
'Emancipation' is currently streaming on Apple TV+.
