Blaxploitation is a film subgenre within American cinema that emerged in the 1960s and thrived from the early to mid-1970s.

Rooted in exploitation films, the subgenre arose from the cultural momentum of the Civil Rights Movement and Black Power Movement. That was during a time when African American artists seized the opportunity to reclaim their narrative and representation of the Black identity in the arts.

Coined in 1972, the term “Blaxploitation” is a fusion of “Black” and “exploitation” — coined by Junius Griffin, the then-president of the Beverly Hills-Hollywood branch of the NAACP. In his critique of Hollywood’s representations, Griffin noted that the genre was “proliferating offenses” against the Black community by reinforcing racist stereotypes of inherent criminality.

The following is a list of notable Blaxploitation films…

1968

• Uptight — drama loosely based on the book of the same name, and basically an updated version of the 1935 film The Informer by John Ford. It is the story of a Black nationalist organization in Cleveland that becomes disillusioned with non-violence after the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and they prepare for urban guerilla warfare. The soundtrack was performed by Booker T. & the MG’s. Directed by Jules Dassin.

1970

• The Black Angels — a black motorcycle gang that is part of the outlaw biker film genre.
• Carter’s Army — television film about a unit of black soldiers in World War II.
• Cotton Comes to Harlem — based on a novel by Chester Himes, features two black NYPD detectives, Coffin Ed Johnson (Raymond St. Jacques) and Gravedigger Jones (Godfrey Cambridge), on the hunt for a money-filled cotton bale stolen by a corrupt reverend named Deke O’Malley. Directed by Ossie Davis.
• They Call Me Mister Tibbs! — sequel to In the Heat of the Night (1967), it is a pre-Shaft Blaxploitation, and stylistically different from the original film.

1971

• Shaft — adaptation of the novel by Ernest Ralph Tidyman of the same name about a private detective who is hired by a Harlem mobster to rescue his daughter from the Italian mobsters who kidnapped her. The soundtrack features contributions from Isaac Hayes, whose recording of the titular song won several awards, including an Academy Award. Shaft was deemed culturally relevant by the Library of Congress. Stars Richard Roundtree. Directed by Gordon Parks Sr.
• Sweet Sweetback’s Baadasssss Song — action thriller about a hero, an apolitical sex worker, who outwits and flees from white police authorities. Music by Earth, Wind & Fire. Written, produced, scored, and directed by Melvin Van Peebles, who stars as the titular character.
• The Bus Is Coming — drama about a young black soldier who returns home to Los Angeles from combat in Vietnam to find out that his brother had been killed by a gang of racist cops. Stars Mike B. Simms and Burl Bullock. Directed by Wendell James Franklin.

1972

• Across 110th Street — crime thriller about two detectives who try to catch a group of robbers who stole $300,000 from the Mob before the Mob catches up with them. The title track by Bobby Womack reached #19 on the Billboard Black Singles Chart. Directed by Barry Shear. Stars Anthony Quinn and Yaphet Kotto.
• Black Gunn — neo-noir crime thriller starring Jim Brown, Martin Landau, Brenda Sykes, Herbert Jefferson Jr. and Luciana Paluzzi. Directed by Robert Hartford-Davis.
• Black Mama, White Mama — women’s prison film partly inspired by The Defiant Ones (1958). Stars Pam Grier and Margaret Markov in the roles originated by Sidney Poitier and Tony Curtis.
• Blacula — a take on Dracula, featuring an African prince who is bitten and imprisoned by Count Dracula, and once freed from his coffin, he spreads terror in modern-day Los Angeles. Stars William Marshall, Denise Nicholas, and Vonetta McGee
• Come Back, Charleston Blue — loosely based on the novel The Heat’s On by Chester Himes. It is a sequel to the 1970 film Cotton Comes to Harlem. All tracks written by Donny Hathaway, except “Little Ghetto Boy.” Stars Godfrey Cambridge and Raymond St. Jacques.
• The Final Comedown — an examination of racism in the United States, with the backstory leading up to the shootout told through flashbacks. Features music by Grant Green and Wade Marcus. Directed by Oscar Williams. Stars Billy Dee Williams.
• Hammer — a boxer who gets mixed up with a crooked manager who wants him to throw a fight for the Mafia. Stars Fred Williamson. Directed by Bruce D. Clark.
• Hit Man — adaptation of the Ted Lewis 1970 novel Jack’s Return Home, it is the story of an Oakland hit man, played by former NFL player Bernie Casey, who avenges the murder of his brother and niece by a porn star (Pam Grier), theater owner (Edmund Cambridge), childhood idol (Rudy Challenger), and others. Directed by George Armitage.
• The Legend of Nigger Charley — written by and co-produced by and stars Fred Williamson, who stars as the titular character. Directed by Martin Goldman.
• Melinda — ex-girlfriend (Rosalind Cash) and karate class help a disc jockey (Calvin Lockhart) avenge his slain girlfriend (Vonetta McGee). Features music by Jerry Peters and Jerry Butler. Marks the first film appearance by karate champion, Jim Kelly. Directed by Hugh Robertson.
• Shaft’s Big Score! — action-crime drama about private detective, who runs afoul of feuding mobsters as he searches for the truth behind a friend’s death. Directed and scored by Gordon Parks Sr.
• Slaughter — ex-Green Beret seeks revenge against a crime syndicate for the murder of his parents. Stars Jim Brown.
• Super Fly — one of the most controversial, profitable, and popular classics of the genre. Soundtrack by Curtis Mayfield. Directed by Gordon Parks Jr. Stars Ron O’Neal, Carl Lee, Julius W. Harris, and Sheila Frazier.
• Trouble Man — a hard-edged private detective tends to take justice into his own hands. Soundtrack written, produced, and performed by Motown artist Marvin Gaye. Directed by Ivan Dixon. Stars Robert Hooks, Paul Winfield, and Paula Kelly.

1973

• Black Caesar — a street-smart hoodlum has worked his way up to being the crime boss of Harlem. Music by James Brown. Stars Fred Williamson.
• Blackenstein — parody of Frankenstein, featuring a black Frankenstein monster.
• Cleopatra Jones — karate-chopping government agent had the mutual support of the Black Nationalist B&S (Brothers & Sisters) House. This film marked the beginning of a subgenre of Blaxploitation films featuring a strong female leads taking an active role in shootouts and fights. Some of these films include Coffy (1973), Black Belt Jones (1974), Foxy Brown (1974), and T.N.T. Jackson (1974). Stars Tamara Dobson.
• Coffy — nurse turned vigilante takes revenge on all who hooked her 11-year-old sister on heroin. Features a strong female leads taking an active role in shootouts and fights. Starring Pam Grier as the titular character, this film marked her biggest hit, and she subsequently played similar characters in Foxy Brown (1974), Friday Foster (1975), and Sheba, Baby (1975).
• Detroit 9000 — street-smart white detective in Detroit teams with an educated black detective (Hari Rhodes) to investigate the theft of $400,000 at a fund-raiser for Representative Aubrey Hale Clayton (Rudy Challenger). Championed by Quentin Tarantino.
• Gordon’s War — Vietnam vet recruits ex-Army buddies to fight the Harlem drug dealers and pimps responsible for the heroin-fueled death of his wife. Stars Paul Winfield, Gregory Hines, and Carl Lee. Directed by Ossie Davis.
• Hell Up in Harlem — sequel to Black Caesar (1973). Soundtrack by Motown singer Edwin Starr. Stars Fred Williamson and Gloria Hendry.
• Live and Let Die — James Bond movie. Many of the villains and allies are based on stock Blaxploitation characters. Directed by Guy Hamilton. Stars Roger Moore.
• Scream Blacula Scream — sequel to Blacula (1972). Starring William Marshall, who reprises his role as Blacula/Mamuwalde.
• Shaft in Africa — private detective travels to Africa to take down a slavery ring. The third film in the series, after Shaft (1971) and Shaft’s Big Score! (1972). Stars Richard Roundtree and Vonetta McGee.
• Slaughter’s Big Rip-Off, sequel to Slaughter (1972). Stars Jim Brown and Brock Peters
• The Soul of Nigger Charley — sequel to The Legend of Nigger Charley (1972), about the titular character who, after the end of the Civil War, fights against a group of Southern soldiers seeking to reignite the Confederacy.
• The Spook Who Sat By the Door — adapted from the novel of the same name by Sam Greenlee, about a token black CIA employee, secretly a black nationalist, who leaves his position to train a street gang in CIA tactics and guerilla warfare to become an army of freedom fighters. The film was reportedly pulled from distribution and hard to find until 2004, because of its politically controversial message and depictions of an American race war. It was included in the USA Library of Congress National Film Registry in 2012. Music by Herbie Hancock. Directed by Ivan Dixon
• Superfly T.N.T. — Harlem drug dealer (Ron O’Neal) and his girlfriend (Sheila Frazier) retire to Rome, where he joins an African revolution. Directed by Ron O’Neal.
• That Man Bolt — the first spy film in this genre, it combines elements of James Bond with martial arts action in an international setting. Stars Fred Williamson.
• Trick Baby — crime drama based on the book of the same name by ex-pimp Iceberg Slim.
• Willie Dynamite — pimp strives to be number one in New York City. Stars Roscoe Orman (Gordon from Sesame Street fame), Diana Sands, and Thalmus Rasulala.

1974

• Abby — a version of The Exorcist about a virtuous young woman possessed by a demon. A hit in its time, it was later pulled from the theaters after Warner Bros. successfully sued over copyright issues. Stars Carol Speed and William Marshall.
• Black Belt Jones — a federal agent/martial arts expert takes on the mob with the support of a Black Nationalist organization as he avenges the murder of a karate school owner. Features a strong female lead taking an active role in shootouts and fights. Stars Jim Kelly, Scatman Crothers, and Gloria Hendry.
• Black Eye — an action-mystery starring Fred Williamson as a private detective investigating murders connected with a drug ring. Also stars Teresa Graves.
• The Black Godfather — a man rises to underworld power. Based on The Godfather. Stars Rod Perry.
• The Black Six — a black motorcycle gang seeks revenge. It combines Blaxploitation and outlaw biker.
• Claudine — romantic comedy-drama about a single mother, living on welfare with six children, who finds love with a garbage collector. Music by Curtis Mayfield and Gladys Knight & the Pips. Stars James Earl Jones, Diahann Carroll, and Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs.
• The Education of Sonny Carson — drama based on the autobiography of a man with the same name.
• Foxy Brown — Pam Grier once again on a vendetta against a drug ring, who seeks help from the Black Panthers. Originally written as a sequel to Coffy, the film’s working title was Burn, Coffy, Burn! Features a strong female lead taking an active role in shootouts and fights. The soundtrack was recorded by Willie Hutch.
• Get Christie Love! — a police drama about an attractive young black woman who is an undercover cop. This TV movie was later released in some theaters, then it was later made into a short-lived TV series. Stars Teresa Graves.
• Johnny Tough — a young teenager who rebels against authority. Also known as Tough. Stars Dion Gossett and Renny Roker.
• Space Is the Place — a Afrofuturistic, psychedelically themed science fiction featuring Sun Ra & His Intergalactic Solar Arkestra.
• Sugar Hill — a female fashion photographer wreaks revenge on the local crime Mafia that murdered her fiancé with the use of voodoo magic. Stars Marki Bey and Wesley Snipes.
• Three the Hard Way — three black men must stop a white supremacist plot to eliminate all blacks with a serum in the water supply. Directed by Gordon Parks Jr. Stars Fred Williamson, Jim Kelly, and Jim Brown.
• Three Tough Guys — a priest and former police officer solve a bank robbery mystery. Also known as Tough Guys. Music by Isaac Hayes. Stars Fred Williamson and Isaac Hayes.
• T.N.T. Jackson — notable for blending Blaxploitation with the then-popular “chop-socky” martial arts genre. Features a strong female lead taking an active role in shootouts and fights. Stars Jean Bell (one of the first black Playboy playmates)
• Together Brothers — a street gang solves the murder of a police officer who had been a mentor to the gang leader. The first Blaxploitation film to feature a transgender character as the villain. Score composed by Barry White, and the soundtrack features music by the Love Unlimited Orchestra.
• Truck Turner — a former football player turned bounty hunter is pitted against a powerful prostitution crime syndicate in Los Angeles. Music by Isaac Hayes. Directed by Jonathan Kaplan. Stars Isaac Hayes, Yaphet Kotto and Nichelle Nichols.

1975

• The Black Gestapo — a general has started an inner-city People’s Army to try to relieve the misery of the citizens of Watts, Los Angeles. When the Mafia moves in, they establish a military-style squad. Stars Rod Perry.
• Boss Nigger — a bounty hunter takes over the vacated position of Sheriff in a small town in this Western. Because of its controversial title, it was released in some markets as The Boss or The Black Bounty Killer or The Black Bounty Hunter. It is the first film for which Fred Williamson was credited as screenwriter or producer. Stars Fred Williamson and D’Urville Martin.
• Bucktown — action-crime starring Fred Williamson, Pam Grier, and Thalmus Rasulala.
• The Candy Tangerine Man — action-adventure following the story of a powerful pimp and doting father. Stars John Daniels.
• Cleopatra Jones and the Casino of Gold — sequel of Cleopatra Jones (1973), stars Tamara Dobson as a karate-chopping government agent.
• Coonskin — a controversial animated/live-action film about Br’er Fox, Br’er Rabbit and Br’er Bear in a parody of Disney’s Song of the South. It features the voice of Barry White as Br’er Bear. Directed by Ralph Bakshi. Stars Philip Thomas, Scatman Crothers, and Philip Michael Thomas.
• Darktown Strutters — a farce produced by Roger Corman’s brother, Gene. A Colonel Sanders-type figure with a chain of urban fried chicken restaurants is trying to wipe out the Black race by making them impotent through his drugged fried chicken. Directed by William Witney.
• Dolemite — a professional comedian, pimp, nightclub owner, and former prisoner is tasked with dealing with his hometown’s illegal drug trade. The film has attained cult status, earning it a following and making it more well-known than many of its counterparts. A sequel, The Human Tornado, was released in 1976. Directed by D’Urville Martin, who appears as the villain Willie Green. Stand-up comedian Rudy Ray Moore co-wrote the script and also starrs as the titular character.
• Dr. Black, Mr. Hyde — the retelling of the Jekyll and Hyde tale. Stars Bernie Casey.
• Friday Foster — about an ex-magazine model turned magazine photographer who refuses to heed her boss’s advice against becoming involved in the stories to which she is assigned. Stars Pam Grier, Yaphet Kotto, Eartha Kitt, Scatman Crothers, and Carl Weathers.
• Lady Cocoa — crime drama about a witness in police protection. Directed by Matt Cimber. Stars Lola Falana.
• Let’s Do It Again — action crime comedy about blue-collar workers who decide to rig a boxing match to raise money for their fraternal lodge. Music composed by Curtis Mayfield. Directed by Sidney Poitier, who also stars in the film. Co-stars Bill Cosby and Jimmie Walker.
• Mandingo — based on a series of lurid Civil War novels, it focuses on the abuses of slavery and the sexual relations between slaves and slave owners. Features Richard Ward and Ken Norton.
• Sheba, Baby — female private eye (Pam Grier) tries to help her father save his loan business from a gang of thugs.
• Welcome Home Brother Charles — a wrongfully imprisoned black man takes vengeance on those who previously crossed him by strangling them with his penis. Written and directed by Jamaa Fanaka.

1976

• Black Shampoo — a take-off of the Warren Beatty hit Shampoo. Stars John Daniels.
• Car Wash — an episodic comedy with an ensemble cast. Notable for its Grammy Award-winning soundtrack by the funk group Rose Royce.
• Drum — sequel to Mandingo. Stars Pam Grier and Yaphet Kotto.
• Ebony, Ivory & Jade — a drive-in movie favorite about three female athletes who are kidnapped during an international track meet in Hong Kong and fight their way to freedom. This is another cross-genre blend of Blaxploitation and martial arts action. Also known as “She Devils in Chains,” “American Beauty Hostages,” “Foxfire,” “Foxforce.” Directed by Cirio H. Santiago.
• The Human Tornado — a.k.a. Dolemite II, Rudy Ray Moore reprises his role as Dolemite in the sequel to the 1975 film Dolemite.
• J.D.’s Revenge — a horror film in which the main character becomes an unwilling host for the restless spirit of a hustler who was killed 30 years earlier when he was wrongfully accused of killing his sister. Stars Glynn Turman and Lou Gossett.
• The Muthers — combination of Filipino martial arts action and women-in-prison elements. Jeanne Bell and Jayne Kennedy rescue prisoners held at an evil coffee plantation. Directed by Cirio H. Santiago
• Passion Plantation — a blend of the Mandingo and Emmanuelle, erotic films with interracial sex and savagery. Also known as “Black Emmanuel, White Emmanuel.”
• Velvet Smooth — a female private detective hired to infiltrate the criminal underworld.

1977

• Bare Knuckles — L.A. bounty hunter on the hunt for a masked serial killer. Written and directed by Don Edmonds. Stars Robert Viharo, Sherry Jackson and Gloria Hendry.
• Black Fist — a street fighter who goes to work for a white gangster and a corrupt cop. The film is in the public domain. Stars Richard Lawson and Dabney Coleman.
• Black Samurai — based on a novel of the same name by Marc Olden, the script is credited to B. Readick, with additional story ideas from Marco Joachim. Directed by Al Adamson. Stars Jim Kelly.
• Petey Wheatstraw — a successful nightclub comedian is murdered by jealous rivals and is resurrected through a deal with the Devil. It is typical of Rudy Ray Moore’s other films of the era, Dolemite and The Human Tornado, in that it features Moore’s rhyming dialogue. Written by Cliff Roquemore. Stars Rudy Ray Moore, Jimmy Lynch, Leroy Daniels, Ernest Mayhand, and Ebony Wright. Also known as “Petey Wheatstraw, the Devil’s Son-In-Law.”

1978

• Death Dimension — a martial arts filma about a scientist who invents a powerful freezing bomb for a gangster. Directed by Al Adamson. Stars Jim Kelly, Harold Sakata, George Lazenby, Terry Moore, and Aldo Ray. Also known as “Death Dimensions,” “Freeze Bomb,” “Icy Death,” “The Kill Factor,” and “Black Eliminator.”
• The Wiz — a musical fantasy film that reimagines The Wonderful Wizard of Oz with an African-American cast and themes. Stars Diana Ross, Michael Jackson, Nipsey Russell, and Ted Ross.

1979

• Disco Godfather — action film about a retired cop who tries to shut down the local angel dust dealer after his nephew becomes hooked on the drug. Stars Rudy Ray Moore and Carol Speed. Also known as “The Avenging Disco Godfather.”
• Penitentiary — a man deals with his wrongful imprisonment as a youth. Set in a prison, the film exploits all of the tropes of the genre, including violence, sexuality, and the eventual triumph of the lead character. Directed by Jamaa Franklin. Stars Leon Isaac Kennedy.

Post 1970s

• Action Jackson (1988) — action film where the protagonist uses catchphrases to taunt his opponents. Stars Carl Weathers, Craig T. Nelson, Sharon Stone, and Vanity.
• Black Dynamite (2009) — spoofs Blaxploitation films. Stars Michael Jai White.
• Full Clip (2004) — action film remake of the 1975 film Bucktown. Stars Busta Rhymes, Xzibit, Bubba Smith, Tiny Lister and Mark Boone Junior.
• Get Christie Love! (2018) — made-for-TV remake of the 1974 version which, unlike the original, was never picked up for a TV series. Stars Kylie Bunbury.
• Ghost Dad (1990) — family movie with supernatural elements starring Bill Cosby and Denise Nicholas. Directed by Sidney Poitier.
• The Harder They Fall (2021) — Netflix Western film, starring Jonathan Majors and Idris Elba.
• Hookers In Revolt (2008) — throwback to early 1970s Blaxploitation. Directed by Sean Weathers.
• I’m Gonna Git You Sucka (1988) — comedic spoof of classic 1970s Blaxploitation that features many of its stars (Jim Brown, Bernie Casey, Antonio Fargas, and Isaac Hayes). Directed by Keenen Ivory Wayans.
• Jackie Brown (1997) — an homage to the Blaxploitation genre. Based on the Elmore Leonard novel Rum Punch, Tarantino’s title change, casting of Grier and 1970s-style poster art, are all references to Grier’s 1974 film Foxy Brown. Directed by Quentin Tarantino. Stars Pam Grier and Samuel L. Jackson.
• The Last Dragon (1985) — martial arts action film with Blaxploitation elements.
• Original Gangstas (1996) — action-gangster film that brings together 1970s Blaxploitation stars Pam Grier, Richard Roundtree, Fred Williamson, and Jim Brown.
• Pootie Tang (2001) — comedy-satire that incorporates some of the stereotyped action heroes who appeared in the old Blaxploitation films.
• Proud Mary (2018) — action thriller starring Taraji P. Henson and Danny Glover.
• The Return of Dolemite (2002) — the third chapter of the Dolemite series, later retitled as The Dolemite Explosion for the DVD release.
• Shaft (2000) — action crime-thriller re-imagining of the 1971 film, Shaft. Directed by John Singleton. Stars Samuel L. Jackson, Vanessa L. Williams, and Jeffrey Wright.
• Sinners (2025) — horror with musical elements set in 1930s USA, starring Michael B. Jordan in dual role.
• Superfly (2018) — remake of the 1972 film, starring Trevor Jackson and Jason Mitchell.
• Tales from the Hood (1995) — comedy horror anthology film with Urban themes. Directed by Rusty Cundiff.
• They Cloned Tyrone (2023) — Netflix Afrofuturistic neo-Blaxploitation film, starring John Boyega, Teyonah Parris and Jamie Foxx.
• Undercover Brother (2002) — comedy starring Eddie Griffin as a Blaxploitation-style secret agent.
• Undercover Brother 2 (2019) — sequel to the 2002 film, starring Michael Jai White.

Others

• Baadasssss! (2003) — biopic about the making of Sweet Sweetback’s Baadasssss Song, starring Mario Van Peebles.
• Dolemite Is My Name (2019) — biopic about the making of The Dolemite Explosion, starring Eddie Murphy as Rudy Ray Moore.
• The Mack (1973) — produced during the era of such Blaxploitations as The Dolemite Explosion. It is not considered by its makers a true Blaxploitation picture. It is more a social commentary according to Mackin’ Ain’t Easy, a documentary about the making of The Mack, which can be found on the DVD edition of the film. The movie tells the story of the life of John Mickens (a.k.a. Goldie), a former drug dealer recently released from prison who becomes a big-time pimp. Standing in his way is another pimp: Pretty Tony. Two corrupt white cops, a local crime lord, and his own brother (a black nationalist), all try to force him out of the business. Set in Oakland, California, it was the highest grossing Blaxploitation of its time. Its soundtrack was recorded by Motown artist Willie Hutch. Stars Max Julien and Richard Pryor.
• Shaft (2019) — sequel to the 2000 film, also titled Shaft. The concept was revived in 2000 with an all-new sequel starring Samuel L. Jackson as the nephew of the original John Shaft, with Richard Roundtree reprising his role as the original character.