Dominique Fishback Gave Her Heart to ‘Judas and the Black Messiah’
What did the two of you do to ensure that the romantic bond would be reliable?
Before we started, we all had to go to Chicago to meet the family and [Hampton’s son], And my jacket was not enough to bear the Chicago weather. Daniel said, “Just take mine.” So already, in our first meeting, I am wrapped in his soul, I am wrapped in something. And on a personal level, I was sharing things with Daniel and Daniel was sharing things with me, so we really learned how to trust each other. We knew what we were doing for it, that it was bigger than us.
Trust is a lesser part of film chemistry. In many ways, love is about the other person’s back.
When you trust someone, you don’t have to be a defensive or defender, and that’s what I’ve learned personally with Daniel. We went to bowling once, and this blond decided that he wanted to get a fry from my plate. I don’t know him at all, and he fries from my plate! And before I could speak, Daniel and Ian [Duff, another cast member] Fry snatched from his hand and said, “What are you doing?” They all gathered around me, and this was the first time I could say, “Hey wow, this is what it feels like when you don’t have to advocate for yourself.”
Coming from New York and navigating an industry that often ignores women and black women, I don’t want to be tough, I don’t want to advocate for myself – I want to lean more into my divine woman, Where i receive So it was really nice to have them around me, and it was automatic! I didn’t have to look at them and be like, “So, nothing to do?”
Do these types of roles stay with you after shooting, or are you able to move forward easily?
This one was particularly difficult. I don’t know that she left me and I really don’t want her, because I feel that I have learned unconditional love in a way and how I want to navigate the world and how to treat people. I quit seeking independence. Self-determination is something that the Black Panther Party talked about, so when I left Cleveland [where the film was shot] In 2019, I made 2020 my year of independence – or, my “Free Dome” year.
I felt that I was going to travel X, Y and Z, and I really ended up. But I started meditating a lot, doing more journaling, getting to know myself, knowing my triggers, knowing and knowing why and where I was terrified in love or how I wanted to move forward. And I realized that freedom is in everyone’s mind.
