Javicia Leslie says her HBCU prepared her for Hollywood

Javicia Leslie is back in action with a new starring role in Double life.

The film is a murder mystery with a twist, which follows a grieving widow as she learns from her late husband’s mistress that his death was no accident. The two women form an unlikely alliance to uncover the truth behind her murder and unmask the man they both loved. Leslie plays “the other woman”, who was completely unaware that her lover was married, but ultimately proves to be a great help to the widow.

Check out the trailer below:

Obviously, thanks to his breakout role as batman, it’s no surprise that Leslie is talking about this action. However, when we asked him what interested him most about his role in Double life she revealed that it wasn’t just the looks that attracted her.

“Anytime I fight in a movie I’m there for it, and whenever I can use guns and things like that and you have a bada**, action type, I’m all that I’m here for,” Javicia told BOSSIP. “What really interested me was the fact that it was a female-led thriller, because I hadn’t seen that since a long time. I remember growing up and seeing it all the time. What happened? In the 90s and early 2000s, we used to have fun, cool 90s thrillers with women like Sandra Bullock and stuff like kicking a** and then that is as if it had flown away. So to be able to tell this story, that was probably the original reason.

“So it’s funny because you talked about saving the widow,” Javicia added. “I think that was the conflict for me, because I knew I would face shame. I wanted to tell this story of shame. How do you go through this, feel bad, even if you didn’t do it right? Too bad for this position in which you are. As if you were the bad guy.

Source: Courtesy / Paramount

It turns out that having something to fight for is a huge factor in how Javicia chooses her roles.

“It doesn’t have to be a physical fight,” the actress told BOSSIP. “Just like, ‘What am I fighting for in this?’ I think every character has something to fight for, but depending on how long the movie is, maybe we won’t be able to show everyone’s fight. I love it when I can play in that world. What’s am I fighting for my family Am I fighting for a career Am I fighting for what I believe in I love it when there is like a burning desire for something, because it gives me energy in every conversation, because I know what I want. I know what the overall goal is. Let’s just use the circumstances of my character Jo in Double life. The overall goal is that I want to find his killer because this man that I love, regardless of the circumstances, was killed. Now I want to find this killer. I can’t sleep, I can’t rest, until I find out who his killers are.

Once you’ve seen the film, you’ll appreciate Javicia’s fighting skills all the more. But we asked her if her combat training had ever been used in a real-life situation, and she let us know that she’d much rather hide behind a wall and call 911 before fighting an off-set baddie.

Source: Courtesy / Paramount

“I’m not a superhero in real life,” laughed Leslie. “I think it’s important for all women to be trained in some type of martial art and know how to use weapons. Yes, pocket knives and things like that. I think it’s important to always protect yourself, but I don’t think you should go running around looking for things.

We neither ! Double life is currently available on demand and digitally, so be sure to check it out.

Tap the flip to read Javicia’s response on how attending an HBCU (Hampton University) prepared her for Hollywood.