The Legend of the Underground

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The Legend of the Underground
The Legend of the Underground.jpg
Official poster
Directed by
Produced by
  • Giselle Bailey
  • Nneka Onourah
  • Stephen Bailey
CinematographyStephen Bailey
Edited byRabab Haj Yahya
Production
companies
Distributed by HBO
Release dates
  • June 10, 2021 (2021-06-10)(Tribeca)
  • June 29, 2021 (2021-06-29)(United States)
Running time
100 minutes [1]
Countries
  • United States
  • Nigeria
LanguageEnglish

The Legend of the Underground is a 2021 American documentary film, directed and produced by Nneka Onuorah and Giselle Bailey. John Legend served as an executive producer under his Get Lifted Film Company banner. [2] It follows several LGBTQ+ and gender non-conforming youth in Nigeria as they deal with discrimination and make decisions about their lives.

Contents

The film had its world premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival on June 10, 2021. It was released on June 29, 2021, by HBO.

Synopsis

Several non-conformist youth in Nigeria fight rampant discrimination as they decide whether to stay or flee to live elsewhere in another country. They challenge the ideals of gender, conformity and civil rights in Nigeria.

Release

The film had its world premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival on June 10, 2021. [3] It was released on June 29, 2021. [4] [5]

Critical reception

The Legend of the Underground holds a 100% approval rating on review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, based on 8 reviews, with a weighted average of 7.90/10. [6] Reviewers included the New York Times, Vogue, and the Washington Blade. [7] [8] [9]

Accolades

YearAwardCategoryRecipient(s)ResultRef.
2022 GLAAD Media Awards Outstanding Documentary The Legend of the UndergroundNominated [10]

References

  1. ↑ "The Legend of the Underground". Tribeca Film Festival . Retrieved May 29, 2021.
  2. ↑ "The Legend of the Underground". HBO . Retrieved May 29, 2021.
  3. ↑ "Announcing The Feature Film Lineup For Tribeca 2021". Tribeca Film Festival . April 20, 2021. Retrieved May 29, 2021.
  4. ↑ "HBO Documentary Films' "The Legend of the Underground" Debuts June 29". The Futon Critic . May 20, 2021. Retrieved May 29, 2021.
  5. ↑ "HBO Documentary Films' THE LEGEND OF THE UNDERGROUND Debuts June 29". Broadway World. May 20, 2021. Retrieved May 29, 2021.
  6. ↑ "The Legend of the Underground". Rotten Tomatoes . Retrieved July 31, 2021.
  7. ↑ Desmond, Vincent (June 29, 2021). "A New Documentary Highlights the Resilience and Joy of Nigeria's Queer Community". Vogue. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
  8. ↑ Bugbee, Teo (June 30, 2021). "'The Legend of the Underground' Review: Gay Activism in Nigeria". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved July 2, 2025.
  9. ↑ King, John Paul (July 1, 2021). "A new breed of heroes emerges in 'Underground' doc". Washington Blade . Retrieved July 4, 2025.
  10. ↑ "The Nominees for the 33rd Annual GLAAD Media Awards". GLAAD. January 21, 2022. Retrieved January 22, 2022.
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