Bad Hair

Bad Hair is set in Los Angeles in 1989, where Anna Bludso, a young Black woman, hopes to build a career in the image-driven world of music television. When new management takes over her channel, Anna feels pressure to change how she looks, and she visits a fashionable salon for a pricey weave. The new hair brings her the respect and attention she wanted at work, but it also seems to have a life and a violent purpose of its own.

Justin Simien wrote, directed and produced the film, his second feature after Dear White People (2014) and before Haunted Mansion (2023). Elle Lorraine plays Anna, with Jay Pharoah, Lena Waithe, Kelly Rowland, Vanessa Williams and Laverne Cox among the cast; 23 performers and 82 crew members are credited. The horror comedy runs 102 minutes and was released on May 5, 2021.

On IMDb, the film holds 5.6/10 from around 4,800 votes, and on TMDB it also sits at 5.6/10 from 95 votes. Its critics' rating of 6.1/10 from 85 reviews is slightly higher than those audience scores, suggesting reviewers responded a little more warmly than general viewers, though all the numbers point to a mixed reception.