Why King Richard Was Bittersweet for Serena Williams & Olympia

For Serena Williams, King Richard is about more than just tennis.

Indeed, the film, which the athlete executive produced with her fellow tennis star sister Venus Williams, is also about family. The movie—which scored six Oscar nominations including Best Picture—tells the story of Venus and Serena’s upbringing with their father Richard Williams and their journey to becoming some of the biggest icons in sports history. 

Throughout the film, viewers see not just Venus and Serena (played by Saniyya Sidney and Demi Singleton) and their dad Richard (portrayed by Will Smith) on the screen, but also their mother Oracene Price (played by Aunjanue Ellis) and their sisters Yetunde, Lyndrea, and Isha Price (portrayed by Mikayla Lashae Bartholomew, Layla Crawford and Daniele Lawson), who Oracene welcomed during a previous marriage.

Seeing Yetunde—who was shot and killed in Compton, Calif. in 2003—be portrayed in the movie was an emotional moment for Serena. And during her joint interview with Venus for Harper’s Bazaar’s March legacy issue, she recalled showing the film to her 4-year-old daughter Alexis Olympia Ohanian Jr. 

“We made sure to take out the stuff that was not kid friendly,” Serena told the magazine, but she noted she was surprised that “it was really more about her saying to me, ‘Tunde.’ She never met my eldest sister. She says she understands that Tunde isn’t around. That was interesting for me in a sad way, but she at least knows her a little bit better.”