Connect with us

Entertainment

Jodie Turner-Smith reveals hopes on ‘fictional normalising’ of Black women in the military

Jodie Turner-Smith
Jodie Turner-Smith is hoping to change perceptions of Black women in the military (Picture: Getty)

Jodie Turner-Smith hopes to be part of a ‘fictional normalising’ of Black women in senior roles in the military with her new film.

The Queen & Slim star, 34, plays a Navy Seal team member in Tom Clancy’s Without Remorse, starring opposite Black Panther actor Michael B Jordan.

The movie is an adaptation of Tom Clancy’s 1993 novel, directed by Stefano Sollima, the filmmaker behind cult crime drama Gomorrah.

Michael plays elite Navy Seal John Kelly, who is seeking justice for the murder of his pregnant wife, when he finds himself inside a much larger conspiracy that threatens to engulf the United States and Russia in an all-out war, while Jodie plays Lieutenant Commander Karen Greer.

She told the PA news agency: ‘Why not be a part of this fictional normalising of it? To be fair, the military are trying to finally open up for women and entertain those possibilities. But I think we still have some ways to go before we’re going to have women in certain roles.

‘So it’s cool to normalise it in in film and television. I mean, why not?

Michael B Jordan
Jodie stars opposite Michael B Jordan in the movie (Picture: BACKGRID)

‘Women are capable of so much. I know this for a fact. I can speak on it. My body can speak on it.’

Jodie, who will soon be seen playing Anne Boleyn in a new Channel 5 series, said she was also excited to bring more diversity to the espionage genre, which follows in the footsteps of Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan films such as Patriot Games and Clear And Present Danger, starring Harrison Ford.

She said: ‘This idea of playing a lead against Michael B Jordan, another Black actor, in something based on a Tom Clancy novel, I mean that is very exciting.

Jamie Bell
Jamie Bell also features in the film (Picture: AP)

‘I think a lot of other people might find that very exciting, too. I can’t wait for them to see it.’

Billy Elliot star Jamie Bell, who also features in the film, added: ‘She is representing not only women in the armed forces, but women of colour in the armed forces.

‘She goes toe-to-toe, beat-for-beat and is in fact their commanding officer, and I think that that is incredibly important, and definitely shifts the perception of the kind of Clancy universe in a more positive, forward-thinking, progressive way.’

Tom Clancy’s Without Remorse is out now on Amazon Prime Video.

Got a story?

If you’ve got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the Metro.co.uk entertainment team by emailing us celebtips@metro.co.uk, calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we’d love to hear from you.


MORE : Kate Garraway’s husband Derek had rare brain inflammation due to coronavirus that doctors hadn’t seen before


MORE : Marilyn Manson sued by Game of Thrones star Esme Bianco for sexual assault and sex trafficking