Jelani Cobb

It's these ancient... Yeah, it's a reference to the deity Papa Legba, who's common in kinds of African forms of spirituality that came with enslaved black people into the South. Yes, sir. But yeah, sometimes people have that idea that that Johnson is at the crossroads, not talking to the devil. He's talking to this deity figure, Papa Legba.

It's these ancient... Yeah, it's a reference to the deity Papa Legba, who's common in kinds of African forms of spirituality that came with enslaved black people into the South. Yes, sir. But yeah, sometimes people have that idea that that Johnson is at the crossroads, not talking to the devil. He's talking to this deity figure, Papa Legba.

You know what I mean?

You know what I mean?

You know what I mean?

Yeah, that's amazing.

Yeah, that's amazing.

Yeah, that's amazing.

One of the things, you know, when I was talking with Zinzi, your wife, and, you know, your frequent collaborator and co-producer on this film, and she compared this with, you know, Black Panther, with the two Black Panther films.

One of the things, you know, when I was talking with Zinzi, your wife, and, you know, your frequent collaborator and co-producer on this film, and she compared this with, you know, Black Panther, with the two Black Panther films.

One of the things, you know, when I was talking with Zinzi, your wife, and, you know, your frequent collaborator and co-producer on this film, and she compared this with, you know, Black Panther, with the two Black Panther films.

And, you know, you talked openly about before you made Black Panther going to Africa to actually get a kind of understanding of Black Americans' relationship with the African continent. Yes.

And, you know, you talked openly about before you made Black Panther going to Africa to actually get a kind of understanding of Black Americans' relationship with the African continent. Yes.

And, you know, you talked openly about before you made Black Panther going to Africa to actually get a kind of understanding of Black Americans' relationship with the African continent. Yes.

And Zinzi pointed out that it was like you were grappling with the questions of distant African ancestry in that film and here grappling with more immediate questions of, you know, ancestry in this country, in Mississippi, where the film is set, you know, even though it's shot in Louisiana, but it's set in Mississippi. And that this is the same sort of kind of ancestral exploration happening here.

And Zinzi pointed out that it was like you were grappling with the questions of distant African ancestry in that film and here grappling with more immediate questions of, you know, ancestry in this country, in Mississippi, where the film is set, you know, even though it's shot in Louisiana, but it's set in Mississippi. And that this is the same sort of kind of ancestral exploration happening here.

And Zinzi pointed out that it was like you were grappling with the questions of distant African ancestry in that film and here grappling with more immediate questions of, you know, ancestry in this country, in Mississippi, where the film is set, you know, even though it's shot in Louisiana, but it's set in Mississippi. And that this is the same sort of kind of ancestral exploration happening here.

That's actually what I wanted to talk about, because literally the size of the film. The last time I saw you, we were in the IMAX offices, and they were showing the reels of the film. First off, I had no idea the reels were that big, like 500, 600 pounds to show this film. But you were talking about how significant it was for this film in particular to be shown in those dimensions.

That's actually what I wanted to talk about, because literally the size of the film. The last time I saw you, we were in the IMAX offices, and they were showing the reels of the film. First off, I had no idea the reels were that big, like 500, 600 pounds to show this film. But you were talking about how significant it was for this film in particular to be shown in those dimensions.

That's actually what I wanted to talk about, because literally the size of the film. The last time I saw you, we were in the IMAX offices, and they were showing the reels of the film. First off, I had no idea the reels were that big, like 500, 600 pounds to show this film. But you were talking about how significant it was for this film in particular to be shown in those dimensions.