Woman King Workout Routine & Weapons Training Explained by Viola Davis  

Viola Davis’ nine-month training program, which included numerous exercises, is broken down by her trainer. The trainer of Viola Davis on The Woman King explains the actress’ workout routine and weapons training. Davis stars as General Nanisca, the strong, capable leader of the Agojie, an all-female legion from West Africa’s Dahomey Kingdom in 1823.

Nanisca leads her army against rival empires and invades European forces under the young King GGozo This film is based on a story developed by Maria Bello, Lashana Lynch, Sheila Atim, and Adrienne Warren. Since The Woman King is a sword-and-sandal historical epic, there will be a lot of action and hand-to-hand combat.

Gina Prince-Bythewood, the film’s director, recently teased a battle similar to Braveheart involving thousands of extras. Recreating West African warfare in the early 19th century at such a scale would require a significant amount of training from the actors. The Woman King cast members’ workout routines and weapons training have been revealed by People.

As Dahomey warriors, the main actors underwent nine months of intense physical training. Following a DNA test, each actor received high-intensity workouts, strength training, and weightlifting tailored for him or her. The film’s trainer and nutritionist, Gabriela Mclain, explained, “There is no one plan that fits all. 

Everybody trains differently.” The stars also trained in martial arts for three hours and weapons for two hours. Davis describes how she engaged in “everything from swordplay, spears, machetes. A lot of punching.” After going through all of her training, Davis admits she “feels like a badass.”

Actors sculpted their bodies and built up their endurance to resemble the fierce women in the story. The goal was to make it look as though it were based on true stories, just as the women would look if they fought,” Mclain said. It was important for the trainer to stay authentic and transform the actors into warriors. 

The Woman King trailer shows how meticulous and strenuous training paid off. Davis is much more muscular than she ever was in any of her previous roles, and can now manipulate weapons like real-life warriors did hundreds of years ago. Davis’ extensive training shows her dedication to the role and to making The Woman King as accurate as possible.

To faithfully portray their characters on screen, actors often undergo extensive training for films. Saving Private Ryan’s stars went through a World War II boot camp to portray a small rifle platoon in the U.S. Army. Recently, Top Gun: Maverick actors had to undergo physical and flight training to interact realistically with real fighter jets.

There has been no different in that regard between The Woman King and her predecessor. To tell the true story of the Dahomey warriors, its stars needed to look tough and fight fiercely like the Agojie. As a result of all their hard work, hopefully, The Woman King will earn some rave reviews.

Dakota Cameron

Dakota Cameron is a seasoned web content writer and covers the Hollywood movies for the MovieThop Website
Ms. Cameron began his professional life as a freelance blogger. Later, he worked for Witbe as a content writer for two years. His interests include blogging, reading, movies and travel.
Ms. Cameron graduated in Journalism and Mass Communication from University State of Georgia University. He is fluent in French, Spanish, and other languages.