Taraji P. Henson Leads a Raw Story of Survival That’s Resonating With Audiences
Tyler Perry’s latest film Straw is currently the #1 movie on Netflix, drawing millions of views and sparking heated conversations. The thriller, starring Taraji P. Henson, Teyana Taylor, and Sherri Shepherd, follows a desperate single mother whose life unravels in a single day after a string of injustices pushes her to the edge.
In the film, Henson plays Janiyah Wiltkinson, a mother barely making ends meet while caring for her sick daughter. She’s hit with school lunch debt, eviction threats, and workplace humiliation — and things escalate when a violent robbery at her job ends with Janiyah pulling the trigger. What follows is a tense, emotionally charged hostage situation at a local bank.
Critics have called the film “overwrought” and melodramatic, but for many Black women watching, Straw is painfully familiar. Its themes — financial stress, systemic neglect, and being criminalized for survival — are far from exaggerated. That resonance has helped catapult it to the top of Netflix’s charts, despite polarizing reviews.
A Familiar Story: Black Women Carry the Burden — Again
Like much of Perry’s past work, Straw centers on a Black woman in crisis. But what sets it apart is how deeply it taps into America’s quiet war on working-class Black mothers — those who are expected to hold it all together, no matter how much they’re handed to carry.
Even the smallest details hit hard: Janiyah’s daughter being shamed over $40 in lunch debt, her landlord threatening eviction without notice, and a boss unwilling to advance her pay for medical needs. It’s not just drama — it’s what many Black women face every day in a system that expects grace under pressure, and punishes anything less.
The emotional anchor of the film is the dynamic between Janiyah, Detective Raymond (Teyana Taylor), and bank manager Nicole (Sherri Shepherd) — three Black women trying to see and save one another in a world that keeps missing them.
Tyler Perry Responds: “These Women Exist. I Know Them.”
As Straw climbed to #1, it also reopened long-standing criticism about how Tyler Perry portrays Black women — often broken, struggling, and suffering. But Perry isn’t ducking the backlash. In an interview with True Love Magazine, he addressed the critiques directly.
“I say nothing to those people who think that my films focus on the struggle of Black women, because they’re right. It does,” Perry said. “What I’m doing is a service… so people will know that Black women are not just strong and one thing; they are all things.”
He emphasized that his stories come from lived experience — drawing on his mother, aunts, cousins, and friends. “This is how I pay homage,” he said.
Perry has also spoken openly about the trauma he witnessed as a child, watching his mother suffer abuse. His documentary Maxine’s Baby further explores that legacy, adding context to the themes in many of his films.
Henson Stands With Perry: “That’s Why I’ll Never Stop Working With Him”
Taraji P. Henson, who delivers a standout performance in Straw, backed Perry’s vision in a recent Breakfast Club interview. “He doesn’t just pull this out of thin air… These women exist, and they need to know they’re not alone,” she said.
Addressing the backlash directly, Henson added: “That’s their own trauma that’s being triggered. And that’s why I’ll never stop working with him.”
While Straw has its flaws — from clunky dialogue to heavy-handed metaphors — its emotional weight hits different because the struggle it depicts is real. For Black women watching, the story isn’t fiction. It’s reflection.
And judging by the film’s #1 spot on Netflix, millions are finally paying attention.
