*Garcelle Beauvais steps into the role of Kai, a resilient trucker in the new film “Taken at a Truck Stop,” part of the Black Girl Missing franchise on Lifetime. The story follows Kai’s desperate manhunt after her niece, Toy, is abducted by an online predator.
“I loved a lot of things about Kai. I did love her strength,” Beauvais shared, emphasizing the character’s grit and the film’s focus on family bonds. The narrative also celebrates the often-overlooked world of female truckers.
“Kai is a tough, tenacious trucker and co-owner of her family’s business,” Beauvais explains, “ I love that we are focusing also on a family, right? The sisters inheriting their dad’s trucking company, which, by the way, there is a large group of female truckers out there that I have a newfound respect for.”
For Beauvais, playing Kai offered a window into an underrepresented world. “We had a few women that we spoke to that told us how to get out of the truck, what’s the demeanor, the danger, because a lot of them sleep in the cabin,” she recalls. “First of all, we know that it’s a lonely job… but the danger of it and the toughness of it. She even showed us how to lock the cabin so no one can get in while they’re sleeping.”
Scroll to continue reading
The actress hopes that highlighting female truckers will bring visibility and respect to their work, while staying true to the core of the “Black Girl Missing” franchise. “I’m glad that we’re bringing light to what they do, but also, keeping true with the Black Girl Missing franchise theme,” she says.
The film also explores timely concerns about online safety and social media overexposure. “We are online all the time, almost 24 hours. We’re sharing places, we’re sharing where we are, sharing our food. And sometimes I think we give too much information,” Beauvais admits. “Since we started the Black Girl Missing franchise, I stopped sharing posts in time, in real time… I think we have to be more cognizant of how much we share and how much people know.”
For Beauvais, the message behind the franchise is deeply personal. “It made people take notice that when Black and brown women, men, boys go missing, we need the same validation. We need the same urgency,” she says. “We don’t want someone to tell us, oh, they’re on drugs, or let’s wait a few days when we know the first 48 hours are the most crucial time to find someone.”
“Taken at a Truck Stop” also centers on Toy, a neurodivergent teen whose abduction sets off the film’s emotional journey. “It was important to show that, yes, she has it, but that doesn’t stop her from living. That doesn’t stop her from being a teenager and wanting to go on the road with her auntie.”
When asked what she wants audiences to take away, Beauvais keeps it simple but heartfelt. “I hope they learn not to share too much information online with people that you don’t know. And then also, I think it’s also a sense of community and family,” she says. “I hope they watch it and get the message.”
And for those discovering the “Black Girl Missing” series for the first time, Beauvais hopes the film will be both enlightening and empowering. “I like the fact that you are seeing all these beautiful brown people on screen, showing a different side of themselves,” she says. “I think also the storytelling, the showing of what the truckers really go through in real life. And again, the awareness of the message, the messaging is important.”
Viewers can watch “Taken at a Truck Stop: A Black Girl Missing Movie” on Lifetime via cable, satellite, or live TV streaming services, such as Hulu. Full episodes and movies are also available on MyLifetime.com and the Lifetime app with a valid TV provider login, or through the Lifetime Movie Club for on-demand viewing.
Watch our full conversation with Garcelle via the clip below.
*This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
MORE NEWS ON EURWEB.COM: Eddie Murphy Reflects on a Legendary Career in Netflix Documentary ‘Being Eddie’
Sign up for our Free daily newsletter HERE.
