From the shadows to the throne—Kimmie’s seized the crown, but at what cost? One wrong step could torch the Bellarie empire forever.
The Season 3 trailer just dropped, and Kimmie’s running the show—facing down enemies, secrets, and a deadly new player who knows too much. Is she the queen or the pawn? The truth will gut you. Watch the clip that’s blowing up the internet. Ready to bow to the boss? 👉
In the high-gloss, high-stakes world of Tyler Perry’s Beauty in Black, where ambition is currency and betrayal is a birthright, the unveiling of the Season 3 trailer has set the internet ablaze with anticipation. Dropped on Netflix’s Tudum platform amid a flurry of cryptic social media teases, the two-minute teaser centers on Kimmie Bellarie (Taylor Polidore Williams), the former exotic dancer now reigning as the de facto queen of the Beauty in Black cosmetics empire. With a steely gaze and a penchant for outmaneuvering her foes, Kimmie’s ascent to “the boss” promises a season of ruthless power plays, buried secrets, and a mysterious new figure threatening to unravel it all. As the clip racks up millions of views, fans are left grappling with one question: Can Kimmie hold the throne, or will her crown become her noose?
The trailer opens with a sweeping shot of the Bellarie headquarters, its glass spire glinting over a Chicago skyline tinged with storm clouds. Kimmie, draped in a tailored crimson blazer, presides over a boardroom of nervous executives, her voice cutting like a blade: “This empire answers to me now.” Quick cuts reveal the fallout: Horace Bellarie (Ricco Ross), the ailing patriarch, scribbling a cryptic amendment to his will from a dimly lit hospital suite; Roy Bellarie (Julian Horton), his scheming eldest son, forging an alliance with a shadowy investor in a smoke-filled penthouse; and Mallory Bellarie (Crystle Stewart), the exiled ex-wife, plotting from a seedy motel, her eyes glinting with vengeance. A new face—teased only as “The Broker” (rumored to be Lance Gross)—emerges, clutching a dossier marked “Bellarie Secrets,” whispering to an unseen ally, “Kimmie thinks she’s won. She’s just started the war.” The trailer ends on a chilling note: Kimmie staring into a cracked vanity mirror, her reflection morphing into a younger, terrified version of herself, as a voiceover intones, “Power’s a mask. Wear it too long, it wears you.”
Since its October 2024 debut, Beauty in Black has been a streaming juggernaut for Netflix, blending Perry’s signature melodrama with gritty commentary on race, class, and the beauty industry’s underbelly. Season 1 introduced Kimmie, a Chicago stripper clawing her way out of poverty after her mother’s eviction. Her chance application to the Bellarie family’s hair school spirals into a marriage of convenience with Horace, thrusting her into a viper’s nest of corporate intrigue and criminal cover-ups. The family’s cosmetics empire, Beauty in Black, hides a trafficking ring tied to international cartels—a secret that propels Kimmie from pawn to player. Season 2, split into parts released in March and September 2025, cemented her transformation: By Part 2’s finale, Kimmie ousted Mallory, sidelined Roy, and exposed Horace’s ledger of illicit deals, claiming the COO mantle in a boardroom coup that left jaws on the floor.
The Season 3 trailer, released September 28, 2025, capitalizes on that momentum. Its viral surge—8 million views in 48 hours, per Netflix analytics—stems from Kimmie’s evolution into a figure fans both cheer and fear. On X, #KimmieTheBoss trended globally, with posts like “Kimmie’s giving Cersei Lannister vibes, but with better hair—Season 3 is gonna SLAY” (@ChiDramaFan, 62K likes) dominating feeds. TikTok edits sync her boardroom strut to Beyoncé’s “Run the World,” while Reddit’s r/BeautyInBlack debates the Broker’s identity: “Ex-cop? Cartel mole? Horace’s secret kid?” (15K upvotes). Perry, ever the hype maestro, stoked the fire with an Instagram Live: “Kimmie’s the boss, but bosses bleed. Season 3? It’s her empire versus her soul.”
Filmed at Tyler Perry Studios in Atlanta, the series leans into its Chicago aesthetic—sleek skyscrapers doubling as the Bellarie tower, gritty South Side alleys echoing Kimmie’s roots. Season 3, expanded to 10 episodes after Season 2’s 65-million-hour streaming haul, promises a deeper dive into Kimmie’s psyche. Williams, 28, told Essence, “Kimmie’s not just winning—she’s wrestling with what winning costs. Every choice scars her.” Her performance, already NAACP Image Award-nominated, balances icy command with fleeting vulnerability: a glance at her sister Rain (Amber Reign Smith) in the trailer, shielding her from a drive-by, hints at personal stakes amid corporate warfare.
The Bellarie family remains the show’s pulsing heart. Ross’s Horace, weakened by a stroke but cunning as ever, dangles succession like a carrot, his hospital-bed scheming framed as a patriarch’s last gambit. Horton’s Roy, the entitled heir, spirals into desperation, his alliance with the Broker suggesting a betrayal that could tank the stock price. Stewart’s Mallory, relegated to a motel but never counted out, channels Perry’s knack for vengeful queens—her Season 2 ouster, after leaking toxic product formulas, set up a comeback dripping with menace. “Mallory’s not done,” Stewart teased to Variety. “She’s a phoenix, and Kimmie’s her kindling.” Supporting players shine: Smith’s Rain, fresh off a salon scandal, grapples with loyalty to Kimmie versus her own dreams; Xavier Smalls’s Angel, the family’s fixer, hints at a queer arc that GLAAD hopes “gets room to breathe”; and Charles Malik Whitfield’s Jules, the enforcer, faces a federal sting tied to the ledger.
The trailer’s new player, the Broker, is a wildcard. Industry buzz points to Gross, known for House of Payne, as a corporate shark with ties to the trafficking ring—a theory bolstered by X posts citing a 2025 L’Oréal whistleblower case mirroring the plot. Perry’s scripts often pull from headlines: Season 1’s toxic-product scandal echoed real-world lawsuits against beauty giants, while Season 2’s trafficking arc nodded to 2024’s global supply chain exposés. “I write what I see,” Perry told Forbes. “The beauty game’s glamorous, but it’s built on broken backs—especially Black women’s.” His Atlanta studio, a 330-acre beacon of Black storytelling, grounds the show’s authenticity, employing a 70% Black cast and crew.
Critics remain divided. The Guardian calls Season 3’s setup “a soap opera with sharper claws,” praising Williams’s “magnetic ruthlessness” but docking points for “trope-heavy villains.” Decider counters, “Kimmie’s arc is Black ambition unfiltered—messy, flawed, triumphant.” Fans lean into the excess: IMDb reviews laud the “boardroom bloodbaths,” though some balk at “exploitative” nudity tied to Kimmie’s dancer past. Social media amplifies the love—Instagram fan art of Kimmie’s crimson blazer has 200K likes—while X debates her endgame: “Is she breaking the cycle or becoming Horace 2.0?” (@BellarieBuzz, 30K retweets).
Season 3’s production, wrapped in August 2025, faced challenges: a leaked clip (debunked as a stunt) briefly halted editing when crew NDAs surfaced online, per The Hollywood Reporter. Netflix’s data-driven renewal—fueled by Season 2’s Top 10 dominance—slates a summer 2026 premiere, with Perry hinting at “two endings” to keep binge-watchers guessing. Subplots tease seismic shifts: Rain’s pitchfork-wielding stand against a cartel thug, glimpsed in the trailer, suggests a vigilante turn; Horace’s will may favor an outsider, per Deadline leaks; and the Broker’s dossier could expose Kimmie’s own past, including a hushed-up juvenile record teased in Season 1’s flashbacks.
The show’s cultural weight lies in its unflinching lens on the beauty industry’s shadows—colorism, exploitation, and the commodification of Black bodies. Essence op-eds tie Kimmie’s rise to real-world entrepreneurs like Madam C.J. Walker, while The Root praises Perry for “making Black women the chessboard’s queens, not pawns.” Yet, pushback persists: a 2025 BET roundtable flagged the show’s “stereotypical” framing of dancers, urging Perry to “elevate beyond soap.” He’s unfazed, telling CBS Mornings, “I’m telling stories for the overlooked. Kimmie’s not perfect—she’s proof you don’t have to be.”
As Beauty in Black barrels toward its third act, the trailer’s mirror motif—Kimmie’s fractured reflection—telegraphs the stakes: Power distorts, and survival scars. With the Broker circling, Mallory scheming, and Roy unraveling, Kimmie’s throne is a tightrope. Perry’s empire, like hers, thrives on audacity: 50 million hours streamed in Season 2’s debut month, a 2023 Netflix deal ensuring more, and a fanbase that’s turned #KimmieTheBoss into a movement. In Chicago’s glittering jungle, one truth holds: The boss doesn’t just rule—she rewrites the rules. Whether Kimmie’s reign endures or implodes, Season 3 promises a coronation soaked in blood.