In 2015, Denzel Washington announced that he would be bringing all ten of August Wilson's "Century Cycle" plays to the big or small screen. Ma Rainey's Black Bottom is the second filmed Wilson adaptation Washington has produced in this cycle, after Barriere (2016). In September 2020, Washington told the New York Times that the third film in the series would be The Piano Lesson, and that he hoped to cast his own son John David Washington and Samuel L. Jackson, with Barry Jenkins directing.
Denzel Washington, who produced this film, was a mentor to Chadwick Boseman since his college years. When Denzel Washington received his 2019 AFI Lifetime Achievement Award, Boseman recounted that he was one of nine of Phylicia Rashad's Howard University acting students for whom Washington paid the full summer-program tuition at the British Academy of Dramatic Acting in Oxford.
Singer Maxayn Lewis provides most of the vocals for Ma Rainey. However, when Ma Rainey sings "These Dogs of Mine" while fondling Dussie Mae (Taylour Paige), it is Viola Davis's actual voice.
This is Viola Davis' second appearance in a film adaptation of a play by August Wilson. She previously appeared in Barriere (2016), which garnered her an Academy Award.
This is Chadwick Boseman's last film. He died on August 28, 2020, after a 4-year battle with colon cancer. Unbeknownst to his fellow cast members, Boseman was receiving cancer treatment while filming this movie.