Hollywood actress Zendaya will be starring in a movie, A White Lie, in which she will portray Anita Florence Hemmings, a light-skinned, African-American woman who graduated Vassar College in 1897 by passing for white, 40 years before Vassar began accepting women of color to its institution.
The psychological thriller is an adaptation Karin Tanabe’s book The Gilded Years and centers on Hemmings and her roommate, a member of one of New York’s most prominent families. Despite becoming close friends with roommate Lottie, Anita struggles to conceal her true identity for four whole years at Vassar under the watchful eye of her peers. The flick will also tell the story of Hemmings’ relationship with Andrew Jackson Love, an African American man also passing as a white man at Harvard. Reese Witherspoon and Lauren Neustadter are producing the film along with Zendaya.
It’s been a great run for the 21-year-old actress who recently starred in Spider-Man: Homecoming. She is gearing up to promote her new film, The Greatest Showman alongside Hugh Jackman and Zac Efron, as well as a few children’s movies on the way.
The is currently no word on who will be directing A White Lie or when production will begin.
