Viola Davis's Dahome in 1823

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Viola Davis' character tries to convince the king, played by John Boyega, to give up the slave trade. The kingdom of Dahome ultimately went to palm oil production as their main source of income. There was so much about this movie visually that you created an intensely convincing world. And that's a very hard thing to pull off.

The historical epic The Woman King, in theaters today, is set in the Kingdom of Dahomey in the 19th century. The kingdom’s elite all-female fighting force was evidence of its enlightened attitude toward women, but its participation in the transatlantic slave trade is a stain on its history. Director Gina Prince-Bythewood and economist Leonard Wantchekon, a descendent of the women fighters, explain.

This episode was produced by Avishay Artsy, fact-checked by Tori Dominguez, engineered by Paul Robert Mounsey, and edited by Amina Al-Sadi and Noel King, who also hosted.

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