Before Black Panther — the superhero film with a black cast whose trailers have consistently left people shook — opens globally on Feb. 16, it will make a special stop in a city near and dear to one of its stars, Lupita Nyong’o.
The Kenyan city of Kisumu will host one private and one public screening of the highly anticipated movie on Feb. 13, county spokesperson Aloice Ager confirmed to BuzzFeed News. Kisumu is located in Kisumu County, where the Oscar-winning actor grew up and where her father Peter Anyang’ Nyong’o serves as governor.
This announcement for Black Panther, which is lovingly referred to as the “Lupita movie” by local news outlets, was well received by Kisumu residents, a majority of whom belong to the Luo tribe like Lupita.
BuzzFeed News has reached out to Nyong’o’s publicist to find out if she will attend the screening.
The screening comes at a time when a break from politics is extremely welcome for the city’s residents.
Kisumu is the stronghold for opposition leader Raila Odinga, who recently held an unofficial swearing-in ceremony for himself as the “People’s President of Kenya.” People in Kisumu are hoping that the Black Panther screening will be the diversion they need from the months-long saga of Kenya’s controversial election season.
Watch Trailer below.