Zola

Plot

A'Ziah "Zola" King, a self-assured waitress and part-time stripper in Detroit, meets Stefani, an outgoing and crass fellow stripper. Stefani invites Zola to dance with her at a club that night, and the next day, Stefani proposes they embark on a road trip to Tampa, Florida, claiming they can make significant money at a secret strip club there. They set out for Tampa with Zola's mysterious roommate, X, and Stefani's dimwitted boyfriend Derrek.

They leave Derrek at a seedy motel while they visit the Tampa club where Stefani claims friends earned over $5,000 in one night. When they perform their earnings are significantly lower. Zola learns that Stefani and X have posted photos of her and Stefani in a Backpage advertisement offering sex. Zola tries to leave, but when X threatens her, Zola realizes X is not a roommate but Stefani's pimp. X takes the women to an upscale hotel. Stefani has sex with a male client. Zola refuses to participate and is incredulous X charges only $150 per client. Zola edits the Backpage ad, changing the rate to $500 to help Stefani earn more money. When Stefani earns over $8,000, X is impressed enough to overlook Zola's intervention.

When X, Stefani, and Zola return to the motel, X is enraged to discover that Derrek has befriended a man named Dion and told him their reason for visiting Tampa. Worried that Dion and his associates will rob them, X forces the group to flee to another hotel and arranges for Stefani to see clients at remote locations. Zola accompanies her to ensure Stefani's safety. When Derrek argues with Stefani, Zola learns she has previously manipulated other dancers into participating in prostitution rackets. The quarrel is interrupted when X bursts in with Baybe, his lover and madam, who is armed with a gun. X gives Zola a gun for the women's protection and accompanies Stefani to meet more clients.

Stefani engages in a gang bang at a private residence, and describes herself to her clients as a woman of God who was meeting her community leader when she met Zola, claiming Zola begged her to ask X for permission to dance at a club he promotes. Stefani portrays Zola in a racially stereotypical and unflattering way. At the next hotel, a client responding to their Backpage ad forces Stefani into a room. Zola flees and calls X and Derrek. The three return to the room where Dion and an accomplice are armed with shotguns. They posed as clients to rob Stefani, who they beat unconscious. X offers the men $50,000 and possession of Zola to let him and Derrek leave with Stefani. When Zola is sexually assaulted by Dion, X manages to draw the gun from her purse and shoot Dion in the throat. The four flee the hotel and arrive at the luxurious home X shares with Baybe. X lets Zola leave and announces his possession of Stefani. Distraught, Derrek throws himself over a balcony and injures his head on the concrete below. As Zola, Stefani, and X drive Derrek to the hospital, Stefani proclaims her love for Zola, who looks out the window without responding.

Production

In October 2015, Detroit waitress A'Ziah "Zola" King posted a 148-tweet thread about a trip she took to Florida with a stripper named Jessica; the story, containing details of prostitution, murder and an attempted suicide, quickly went viral, garnering the recognition of people such as Missy Elliott, Solange Knowles and Ava DuVernay. About a month later, Rolling Stone's David Kushner published an article interviewing people involved in the story; while the article noted several inconsistencies, and King has admitted to embellishing some of the more sensational details, most of those involved have admitted to the general events.

In February 2016, it was announced James Franco would direct the film from a screenplay by Andrew Neel and Mike Roberts. Franco, Vince Jolivette, Christine Vachon, David Hinojosa, and Kara Baker were to produce the film under their Rabbit Bandini Productions, Killer Films and Gigi Films banners, respectively. In January 2018, it was announced that the film was initially set to begin production in February 2018, but was shelved following sexual misconduct allegations against Franco. In June 2018, it was announced that Janicza Bravo would direct, replacing Franco, and that A24 would distribute. In October 2018, Taylour Paige was cast in the lead role. That month, Riley Keough, Nicholas Braun, Colman Domingo and Jason Mitchell joined the cast, and in November 2018, Ari'el Stachel joined the cast.

Principal photography began on October 29, 2018. The entire film was shot in 27 days. Production concluded on December 7, 2018.

Release

The film premiered at the Sundance Film Festival on January 24, 2020, where it was nominated for the Grand Jury Awards pre-screening. Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisitions, under the Stage 6 Films banner, acquired the international rights (excluding Canada, China, and Japan). It was released in the United States on June 30, 2021.

Reception

Box office

In the United States and Canada, Zola was projected to gross $2–4 million from 1,468 theaters in its opening weekend. It made $505,000 on its first day of release and $282,000 on its second. It went on to debut to $1.2 million in its opening weekend and $2 million over the five-day frame, finishing ninth at the box office. It fell 48% to $620,000 in its second weekend, finishing 10th.

Critical response

On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 88% based on 252 reviews, with an average rating of 7.5/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Zola captures the stranger-than-fiction appeal of the viral Twitter thread that inspired it – and announces director/co-writer Janicza Bravo as a filmmaker to watch." On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 76 out of 100, based on 46 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". PostTrak reported that 68% of audience members gave Zola positive score, with 46% saying they would definitely recommend it.

Writing for The A.V. Club, Shannon Miller gave the film a grade of "B" and said: "Zola is first and foremost a zany, catastrophic road-trip dramedy, one that balances the whimsy of social media with the harrowing reality of being trapped in a dangerous situation." Critic Owen Gleiberman of Variety called Zola "a true story so extravagant it feels like it must have been made up. It's a mini volcano of sex and violence and danger and deception. It's a close-to-the-bone portrait of women who work in the sex industry. It's a youthquake as real as American Honey. It's a piece of pure filmmaking bravura."

Peter Debruge, also writing for Variety, praised the "virtuoso filmmaking and a pair of killer performances" but wrote: "Sure, it's fun to see a movie skewer the vapid soullessness of social media and the unregulated economy of male desire, but Zola ultimately rings hollow. The actors are fearless, and yet, how much do we know about these characters in the end? The answer: something of their values, but almost nothing of their lives."

Writing for The Face, Ludwig Hurtado said the film was a canonical part of a genre he named "Tampa-core," which he described as presenting a "hyper-stylised vision of Florida" with "all the violence and drama of a classic western"; he included Waves and Spring Breakers as comparable titles.

In June 2025, IndieWire ranked the film at number 59 on its list of "The 100 Best Movies of the 2020s (So Far)."

Accolades

In 2021, Zola was nominated for seven Independent Spirit Awards, including Best Screenplay. A'Ziah "Zola" King was not nominated as a writer for the movie, nor was she invited to attend. King was frustrated by this snub, writing on Twitter, "I think it's hilarious ZOLA is up for 7 awards and no one thought to invite me nor include me IN the writers award category. As if there would've been a film or a script to write if I didn't um… write it?" She said that her issue was only with A24, as writers Harris and Bravo had been very supportive to her.