Historically speaking, the phrase “40 Acres” has long symbolized broken promises and betrayal toward Black Americans. Short for “40 Acres and a Mule,” it refers to a pledge the U.S. government made after the Civil War to grant newly freed slaves 40-acre plots of seized Confederate land. That promise was swiftly abandoned when Andrew Johnson—the notoriously racist president who succeeded Abraham Lincoln—revoked the order. Since then, “40 Acres” has endured as a painful reminder of the reparations still owed to Black Americans, a symbol often referenced in pop culture by artists like Kendrick Lamar and Spike Lee.

The latest artistic nod to this still-unreconciled injustice is 40 Acres, a horror-thriller starring Till actress Danielle Deadwyler. Out July 2, the film follows Hailey Freeman (Deadwyler), a Black woman surviving in a near-future America decimated by famine and civil war—a post-apocalyptic landscape where ruthless militias roam, scavenging for land, supplies, and food, even if that means turning to cannibalism.

Hailey lives on land passed down from her ancestors, a fertile plot she shares with her partner and children. Thanks to her deep knowledge of the land, their homestead is thriving—an oasis amid the chaos. But when her teenage son Emanuel (Kataem O’Connor) unwittingly invites danger through a crush on a mysterious girl, Hailey—a former soldier with serious combat skills—is forced to go to brutal lengths to defend her family.

“Hailey is the critical, urgent, passionate root of what it means for [the family] to survive,” Deadwyler tells BET. “She’s trying to build a knowledge within her children of what it means to be in the world. But there’s a dystopic, violent, aggressive world that is happening. And so that Black maternity is turnt up to a million.”

The themes in 40 Acres aren’t subtle—and that’s intentional. For generations, Black women have been expected to embody both the nurturing caretaker and the fierce protector. Hailey does both—flawlessly. The film opens with her savagely taking out white men attempting to invade her family’s land, instantly establishing her as a no-nonsense, cold-blooded mama bear willing to do whatever it takes.

“They're literally coming over the walls,” Deadwyler says. “And I think we understand that in the present. Black women send their sons and daughters out to enjoy life—to party, to celebrate graduation—and they may not come home. This just takes that to the next level.”

The film resonates with themes of reparations, economic justice, and the systemic theft of land from Black and brown communities, including the specific struggles of Black farmers. Still, none of that overwhelms Hailey’s mission. Deadwyler is commanding on screen, dispatching enemies with guns, blades, and bare hands as she fiercely protects her family’s sanctuary.

She only had about two weeks to train for the film, but she leaned on prior experience—including action sequences from The Harder They Fall—as well as a skilled stunt team and gun-slinging refreshers to embody the warrior we see on screen.

“The script is delightfully fun and rich,” Deadwyler says. “It hints at what it means to preserve and maintain land and the connectivity to it. And I get to be a badass and fight. The whole family gets to fight. I find that really phenomenal.”

40 Acres debuts nationwide July 2.