Gurira speaks on Afeni Shakur

Bruce Ndlovu
United States-based Zimbabwean actress Danai Gurira says she felt closer toA� Afeni, during the making of slain rapper Tupac Shakura��s much anticipated movie, All Eyez on Me.

The release date of the blockbuster biopic is getting nearer, with a trailer for the movie, in which Gurira is expected to play a pivotal role, released last week.

Afeni, who was instrumental in the making of the movie, passed away in May this year.

a�?I could study her my whole life. I was totally amazed by how dynamic she was,a�? she told harpersbazzar.com.

a�?There are so many things about her you never learn about a�� how she taught (her son) to love Shakespeare as a kid, how she was able to get him into the Baltimore School for the Arts, how she encouraged him to perform at the Apollo at age 12 in Raisin in the Sun. You know, they were pretty down and out, but she managed to do all that,a�? she said.

Before making her name on the Walking Dead Gurira acquired a reputation as a playwright whose work advocated for change, a trait which made her all the more interested in portraying the firebrand Black Panther Afeni.

a�?She was a revolutionary and he was a revolutionary. And therea��s something so complicated about being a revolutionary because youa��re not working with the system.

The system and you dona��t fit. And it was such an interesting lesson to learn a��how in the 60s and 70s they had to be so outspoken with who they were and what they believed in so that they could be heard. Everyone can learn from that a�� the courage it takes to transform a system,a�? she said.