'Self Made: Inspired by the Life of Madam CJ Walker': Zahra Bentham was 'blown away' by millionairess' story
Spoilers for Netflix's 'Self Made: Inspired by the Life of Madam CJ Walker'
When actress Zahra Bentham auditioned for the role of Nettie Ransom for Netflix's 'Self Made: Inspired by the Life of Madam CJ Walker', she just knew this role was hers to conquer. "I remember getting this audition and telling my homegirl Mouna Traoré that 'This one's mine'," the actress tells MEA WorldWide (MEAWW) in an exclusive interview.
The best friends had received auditions for the series with Traoré looking into the role of Esther. The possibility of working on a series together was beyond exciting.
"Most of what our meetups consisted of was eating, auditioning and praying. We prayed a lot. One of our prayers was to work together again. I don't think we thought it could have really even happened again but why not work with your best friend?" Bentham recalls.
"Pretty unreal [looking] back at it now."
Netflix's 'Self Made: Inspired by the Life of Madam CJ Walker' follows Sarah Breedlove's (Octavia Spencer) inspiring journey of becoming Madam CJ Walker, the pioneer of African American hair care and America's first female self-made billionaire. The four-part limited series is inspired by the book 'On Her Own Ground', written by Walker's great-great-grandaughter A'Lelia Bundles.
Walker's groundbreaking story left Bentham in awe of her and it was the main reason for the actress to work on the show. "Once I dug into Madam CJ Walker's story I was blown away. Questioning why I hadn't learnt about her in school. I mean, she was a self-made millionaire! During those times? That's incredible!" she says.
"If you don't know, in the African American community, hair is very important to us women."
Bentham plays the role of Nettie Ransom, a highly educated, intelligent woman who helps Sarah with her business. "Nettie really helps show the rest of the women in the club how valuable Sarah Breedlove is," she says. When Sarah initially moves to Indianapolis to launch her company, several women from the community do not believe in her. "It was very difficult for her to even get herself on her two feet with her business."
"I found a lot of similarities in Nettie with myself," Bentham notes. "Her ability to be selfless in helping someone she believes in despite everyone disagreeing. Takes a lot for someone to go against the grain."
'Self Made: Inspired by the Life of Madam C.J. Walker' is a powerful telling of the struggles of a black woman rising above hate and despair to enable her community to discover new horizons.
This is the first part of a two-part interview. You can read the first part here.
All episodes of 'Self Made: Inspired by the Life of Madam C.J. Walker' are currently streaming on Netflix.
