You’ve seen the following actresses set it off in major films over the years. Black Life fills you in on what Hollywood’s leading ladies in urbane cinema are starring in next.



Since the movie Love & Basketball, Sanaa Lathan has been slam dunking roles as the “girl next door.” However in her new role, she plays the secretive, vindictive wife “Andrea” in the mid-September release of Tyler Perry’s new film A Family that Preys; a movie that captures the undercurrent of buried emotions as two diverse families deal with secrets, wealth and betrayal.



Sanaa joins Taraji Henson, who also stars in A Family that Preys. You may remember Taraji from her break-out role in John Singleton’s film Baby Boy. Since then, the raspy talking actress has made her mark and tested her singing chops in the hit film Hustle & Flow, where she belted out the catchy chorus to the Oscar winning song “It’s Hard Out Here for a Pimp.” Lately, Ms. Henson has found herself alongside heavy hitters like Brad Pitt, whom she stars with in the highly anticipated film The Curious Case of Benjamin Button--in addition to Hurricane Season where she shares the screen with Forest Whitaker. Both films are released later this year.



Newcomer Donielle Artese got her start as a professional dancer for some of the world’s hottest stars including Diddy and Blink 182—she even found herself getting the thumbs up from Cher in a past American Music Awards Performance. However, lately Ms. Artese has been soaking in her role in the Golden Globe winning series Mad Men where she plays “Sheila White”, the young girlfriend to the Orson Welles “look-alike” “Paul Kinsey” (Michael Gladis’). You can catch Donielle on season two of the madly popular series which takes you up close and personal inside the treacherous world of advertising in the 60’s.



Joy Bryant is a blend of beauty and brains. After receiving a full academic scholarship to Yale, she was spotted by a modeling agent and later found herself modeling for brand icons such as Tommy Hilfiger. Yet, it was Denzel Washington who placed her on the Hollywood map after she starred in his critically acclaimed film Antwone Fisher. Since then Joy has crossed commercial lines portraying roles as the straight laced girlfriend to 50 Cent in Get Rich or Die Trying or the politically charged film Bobby. Today you can find her as spokesperson for Jay-Z’s Evolution campaign for multi-million dollar clothing line Rocawear.



Queen Latifah has come a long way from her days as a gun toting bank robber in her first major film role Set it Off. She has risen from rapper to Oscar nominated actress in the Oscar winning film Chicago. You can catch The Queen in her latest film The Secret Life of Bees; a film which taps into the mind of a 14 year old girl who finds solace in three sisters portrayed by Queen Latifah, Alicia Keys and Sophie Okonedo. The Secret Life of Bees opens at the 12th Annual Urban World Film Festival, where she is the honorary chair.

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