Halle Bailey Shares BTS Look at 'The Color Purple' as She Wraps Filming

The 'Grown-ish' alum plays Young Nettie in the Blitz Bazawule-directed film adaptation of the Broadway musical.

That's a wrap on another project for Halle Bailey! The 22-year-old took to Instagram on Thursday to say that she has officially finished filming on The Color Purple, and to share several behind-the-scenes looks of her time on set. 

"and that’s a wrap for me on the color purple," Bailey captioned the gallery of photos and video showing her time on the Blitz Bazawule-directed film adaptation of the Broadway musical. "i’m so very grateful to have had this experience, my second major motion picture complete in the last year and a half😭💕 God is so good 💕 here’s a few of my fav moments without showing too much ❤️"

The slides include photos of Bailey being hugged and receiving flowers from film producer Oprah Winfrey, the actress petting a horse, getting her hair done and the lush Georgia location the production is filming on. Bailey also shared a video of the moment she finished her final scene, with Bazawule calling it a wrap and her receiving her flowers from Winfrey. Co-stars Colman Domingo and Phylicia Mpasi make an appearance in one photo, as well as Bailey's cat, Poseidon, in a slide showing Bailey in her trailer. 

The actress' friends and co-stars shared love in the replies to her post, including Domingo, who wrote, "Such a pleasure. Happy wrap my friend. You were so incredible to work with. I adore you."

Chloe Bailey, her older sister and musical partner -- and frequently her biggest supporter -- also left a comment, writing, "I am so proud of you halle!!!!"

The film, which began shooting in Georgia in March, is being produced by Steven Spielberg and Winfrey. Spielberg directed the 1985 film of the same name that Winfrey starred in. 

Danielle Brooks and Fantasia Barrino star alongside Bailey as Sofia and Celie, respectively. The rest of the star-studded cast includes Domingo as Mister, Mpasi as Young Celie, Taraji P. Henson as Shug Avery, Corey Hawkins as Harpo, H.E.R. as Squeak, Louis Gossett Jr. as Ol' Mister, David Alan Grier as Reverend Avery, Tamela J. Mann as First Lady, Ciara as Adult Nettie, Deon Cole as Alfonso and Stephen Hill as Buster.

ET spoke with Bailey on the red carpet at Sunday's BET Awards, where she shared a bit about her time filming the musical adaptation.

"We're supposed to be wrapped next week, so crossing my fingers that we get it done, and I've been having a great time," she marveled. "I pinch myself every day on that set... to be a part of such a historic film that we've all known growing up."

"It's like, 'Wow, what can we do to make this even greater than it already is?'" she added. "Because it's such an amazing base, and I'm just grateful to be part of the whole project."

ET also spoke with Henson on the red carpet, who hosted the BET Awards for the second year in a row,  and the 51-year-old shared a few behind-the-scenes details on her role.

 

"I don't think anybody's ready for it, it's beautiful," Henson said of filming the musical. "We're not done, still working and I gotta go back after this but I don't think anybody's ready. It blows me away every day what we put in the can. It's just amazing cinematography."

Henson said there's something "special" about working on the film's set, likening it to her experiences filming The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and Hidden Figures

"Every day we're like, 'Wow, can you believe what we’re doing?' This is special, you can feel it," she added. 

"It's magical, that's the only way I can put it," Henson said of the production. "Blitz's vision is just so majestic and I don't know if I've ever seen Black people look so beautiful." 

She continued, "In a time when it wasn't beautiful for Black people, there's still beauty there and joy. It's not so heavy and depressed and weighing on the trauma, you know, it's really about how miraculously Black people can find joy even in the darkest places." 

The Color Purple is set to come out on Dec. 20, 2023.

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