The 40 Best Black Movies of the 21st Century

Rotten Tomatoes is celebrating the work of Black filmmakers and performers and the stories they have brought to our theaters over the past 20-plus years. In this guide to the best-reviewed African American movies of the 21st Century – that's from 2000 all the way to now – you'll find some of the most incredible voices working in movies today, and some of the most game-changing, industry-shaking films to hit theaters in decades. Think titles like Ryan Coogler's Black Panther, the fourth highest-grossing movie of all time at the U.S. box office. Or Gina Prince-Bythewood's seminal star-making romance, Love and Basketball. Or Moonlight, which made history as the first film with an all-black cast to win Best Picture at the Academy Awards in 2017. Or Ava DuVernay's Selma, which at 99% on the Tomatometer remains one of the most critically acclaimed films of all time.