Lovie Simone and Jharrel Jerome shine in ‘Selah and the Spades’

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Even though there are tons of movies that have been sidelined by the coronavirus crisis, there are still some great projects heading our way. Selah and the Spades is a gem that won us over at the Sundance Film Festival in 2019, and now it’s heading to Amazon Prime just in time to help you through the quarantine.

Written and directed by Tayarisha Poe, Selah and the Spades stars Lovie Simone (Greenleaf), Jharrel Jerome (When They See Us), and Jesse Williams (Grey’s Anatomy) and it’s not to be missed.

Here’s the official synopsis:

In the closed world of an elite Pennsylvania boarding school, Haldwell, the student body, is run by five factions. Seventeen-year-old Selah Summers (Lovie Simone) runs the most dominant group, the Spades, with unshakable poise, as they cater to the most classic of vices and supply students with coveted illegal alcohol and pills.

Tensions between the factions escalate, and when Selah’s best friend/right hand Maxxie (“When They See Us’s” Jharrel Jerome) becomes distracted by a new love, Selah takes on a protégée, enamored sophomore Paloma (Celeste O’Connor), to whom she imparts her wisdom on ruling the school. But with graduation looming and Paloma proving an impressively quick study, Selah’s fears turn sinister as she grapples with losing the control by which she defines herself.

In her feature debut, writer/director Tayarisha Poe immerses us in a heightened depiction of teenage politics. This searing character study encapsulates just how intoxicating power can be for a teenage girl who acutely feels the threat of being denied it. Exciting newcomer Lovie Simone’s performance beautifully embodies both Selah’s publicly impeccable command and the internal fears and uncertainty that drive it.

TheGrio caught up with the actress recently to discuss her role. You can check it out when it hits Amazon Prime on April 17.

Here’s the trailer: