When your father is the legendary filmmaker Melvin Van Peebles, you’ve got to come correct if you’re to follow in his footsteps. And that’s exactly what Mario Van Peebles has done, becoming a prominent figure in African-American cinema and independent filmmaking with films such as New Jack City, Panther, and Baadasssss! But it was 1993’s Posse that, for me and probably legions of others, first showed the integral role that Black people played in the Old West. While the Western genre largely ignored our contributions and very existence, Peebles destroyed those old ways of thinking in a hail of bullets.
Peebles returns to the Western genre with Posse‘s spiritual successor, Outlaw Posse, which is in theaters now. It’s a full circle moment as Mario Van Peebles stars alongside his son, Mandela, passing down his knowledge the way Melvin did for him.
I had the pleasure of speaking with Mario Van Peebles about Outlaw Posse, and this was a real treat for me as someone who has always appreciated his work. We talked about his love of Westerns, what he feels there is to say through the genre now, how he gathers such stellar casts for small-budget projects, and of course working with his son, Mandela.
You can watch my interview with Van Peebles below!