written by Samantha Bergeson, IndieWire
Viola Davis is a certified action star — but just in case you needed a reminder, just call the Academy Award winner Madam President in her latest feature “G20.”
Davis leads the new Amazon MGM Studio blockbuster film as a U.S. president who has to fight against crypto terrorists after the annual G20 summit is attacked. Anthony Anderson, Marsai Martin, Ramón Rodríguez, and “The Boys” actor Antony Starr also appear in the film, alongside Douglas Hodge, Elizabeth Marvel, Sabrina Impacciatore, and Christopher Farrar.
The official synopsis reads: “When the G20 summit comes under siege, U.S. President Danielle Sutton (Davis) becomes the number one target. After evading capture by the attackers, she must outsmart the enemy to protect her family, defend her country, and safeguard world leaders in this action-packed thrill ride.”
Patricia Riggen directs the feature, which was co-written by Logan and Noah Miller, Caitlin Parrish, and Erica Weiss. The story was by Logan and Noah Miller.
Davis’ JuVee Productions produces “G20,” with Andrew Lazar and Julius Tennon.
Davis previously delayed filming “G20” to stand in solidarity with the 2023 actors strike. The film did receive a SAG-AFTRA waiver to continue production, but Davis issued a statement explaining why the “G20” project would be halted.
“I love this movie, but I do not feel that it would be appropriate for this production to move forward during the strike,” David said at the time. “I appreciate that the producers on the project agree with this decision. JuVee Productions and I stand in solidarity with actors, SAG/AFTRA, and the WGA.”
Davis recently accepted the Cecil B. DeMille Award at the 2025 Golden Globes inaugural event, Golden Gala: A Celebration of Excellence. Meryl Streep, who starred with Davis in “Doubt,” presented the honor. During her acceptance speech, Davis reflected on her career.
“Let me tell you something, not to be a contradiction but when I started off in my career I took a lot of jobs because of the money,” Davis said. “I do not believe that poverty is really the answer to craft. I never did. I don’t think that there’s any nobility in poverty. I’ve maybe seen too many rat-infested apartments. I’ve seen too many relatives dead or dying for lack of health care. No. I thank every job I got. It was an opportunity to get in there and tinker, right? And then sometimes those gold nuggets would rain down on me. I got the Mrs. Millers and the Annalise Keatings and the Abilene Clarks and the Amanda Wallers. And I would go ‘Oh my god, I’m cooking. I’m going to be the next Meryl Streep.’ And then nothing. More often than not I got the dead characters. Like the woman standing on the street corner with the cigarette and the bad skin. The characters that are dead, that nobody cares about, that no one loves. I got them.”
She added of her past, “What I had was magic. I was curious. I could teleport — I could take myself out of this worthless world and relieve myself of it at times. I could go to a place where I can have belly laughs. Where I can have fun. The biggest magic was, I could see people. […] Little Viola is squealing. She’s standing behind me now, she’s pulling on my dress. She’s wearing the same red rubber boots that she wore rain or shine because they made her feel pretty. She’s squealing. She’s saying one thing. She says ‘Make them hear this.’ What she’s whispering is: I told you I was a magician.”
“G20” premieres April 10 on Prime Video. Check out the trailer below.
Featuring Work from VXF Supervisor, Sean Farrow
