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The Six Triple Eight (Soundtrack from the Netflix Film)
The Six Triple Eight (Soundtrack from the Netflix Film)
Film score by Aaron Zigman
Released	December 6, 2024
Length	53:59
Label	Netflix Music
Producer	Aaron Zigman; Tyler Perry; Joel C. High;
Aaron Zigman chronology

The Six Triple Eight
The Six Triple Eight
	Release poster
Directed by	Tyler Perry
Written by	Tyler Perry
Based on	"Fighting a Two-Front War"; by Kevin M. Hymel
Produced by	Keri Selig; Carlota Espinosa; Tony Strickland; Angi Bones; Nicole Avant; Tyler Perry;
Starring	Kerry Washington; Ebony Obsidian; Dean Norris; Sam Waterston; Oprah Winfrey;
Cinematography	Michael Watson
Edited by	Maysie Hoy
Music by	Aaron Zigman
Production; companies	Tyler Perry Studios; Mandalay Pictures; Intuition; Her Excellency Productions;
Distributed by	Netflix
Release dates	December 6, 2024 (United States); December 20, 2024 (Netflix);
Running time	127 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English

The Six Triple Eight is a 2024 American war drama film written and directed by Tyler Perry, on the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion, an all-Black and all-female battalion, in World War II.^[2] The film features an ensemble cast which includes Kerry Washington, Ebony Obsidian, Milauna Jackson, Kylie Jefferson, Shanice Shantay, Sarah Jeffery, Pepi Sonuga, Moriah Brown, Gregg Sulkin, Susan Sarandon, Dean Norris, Sam Waterston and Oprah Winfrey.

The film is based on the 2019 magazine article "Fighting a Two-Front War", by Kevin M. Hymel, on the contributions of the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion, an all-Black and all-female battalion, in World War II.

The Six Triple Eight was released in select cinemas on December 6, 2024, before its streaming debut by Netflix on December 20, 2024.

Plot

A West Virginian mother waits every day for news about her two sons who are serving overseas. Meanwhile childhood friends Lena and Abram reckon with the difficulty of their budding romance (Lena is black and Abram is Jewish) in 1940s Philadelphia, as he prepares to deploy. Abram dies shortly after enlisting and a heart-broken Lena vows to enlist after her high school graduation.

On the train to basic training in Georgia, Lena meets other enlistees who will become her friends. There, the battalion is trained by Captain Charity Adams and Lieutenant Noel Campbell. Despite being well-trained, the battalion is never given any orders.

One day, the West Virginia mother travels to the White House to meet Eleanor Roosevelt and tells her that, across the country, no one is receiving mail from the war. President Roosevelt meets with two high-ranking officers, Mrs. Roosevelt, and Mary MacLeod Bethune to discuss the situation.

The general admits that mail is not being delivered but explains that, despite assigning several units to the job, including a women's unit, the task is a logistical nightmare, and they have to prioritize actual fighting. Bethune maintains, however, that the Black Women's Army Corps is up to the task, so Captain Adams' unit is finally given orders.

In Europe, the battalion faces a racist commanding officer, General Halt, who has the unit cross the ocean in a private vessel without a military escort. Then they are to march through town immediately upon landing, and assigned to a disused, rat-infested, unheated grammar school.

The newly promoted Major Adams and her second-in-command Captain Campbell are given six months to turn the school into a post office and barracks and clear a two-year backlog of undelivered mail. The deadline is intended to ensure their failure.

Once the battalion has toiled to put together a liveable barracks, pristine mess hall and well-organized mail sorting hall, one day Lena loses her composure upon seeing nonchalant handling of dog tags. Later, she breaks down to a few close mates, revealing her connection to Abram was her reason for enlisting. As she had not received any correspondence from him, she hopes to find some now. Major Adams, now knowing this first-hand response toward the mail blockage, feels inspired.

Along with a notification that their first two months of sorted mail was undeliverable, the battalion is asked to host African-American soldiers to boost morale. Lena sees Hugh there, who she had met previously. They start to dance, but she soon leaves upon recognizing a song she associates with Abram. So they decide to be friends.

When it is discovered that an occasional letter is opened, the battalion members point out various difficulties and challenges they face. These include multiple cases of identical names, multiple locator cards for soldiers as their units move, rats are damaging addresses and their contents and mold, among other things.

After FDR's death, a white chaplain arrives, and delivers a sermon which undermines Major Adams' qualifications and morals. She promptly finds the extremely negative report he has written about her, has his things packed and sends him off.

On the day Lena gets Abram's letter, two women of their unit die from a UXB bomb en route back to the school. After their burial, Lena is able to visit his grave, reading his letter asking her to live a long life and finally gives him a proper goodbye.

General Halt visits the 6888, criticizing them harshly. As they work around the clock, the night shift is sleeping when he arrives. He is not allowed in the showers lest someone is showering. After Halt inspects the mail sorting area, he declares Major Adams incompetent and says he will replace her with a white male. Adams responds "over my dead body", on which she elaborates eloquently in the General's face, makes clear that she will not step down. The soldiers who heard the exchange remain standing at attention until she comes down to get them to start work again, whereupon they give the Major a rousing applause.

As General Halt is trying to push Major Adams' court martial through, he hears cheers from his unit as their mail finally arrives. The 6888 successfully straightened out the backlog of two years or 17 million pieces of mail in just 90 days, despite the challenges. They were later sent to Rouen, France, to clear another backlog. Lena later marries Hugh, living a long life.

Not especially appreciated when returning to US soil at the time, Michelle Obama oversees a ceremony honoring the 6888. Also, US Army Base Fort Lee was renamed partially in Adams' honor.

Cast

Kerry Washington as Major Charity Adams
Ebony Obsidian as Lena Derriecott Bell King
Dean Norris as General Halt
Sam Waterston as Franklin Roosevelt
Oprah Winfrey as Mary McLeod Bethune
Susan Sarandon as Eleanor Roosevelt
Milauna Jackson as Captain Noel Campbell
Kylie Jefferson as Bernice Baker
Shanice Shantay as Johnnie Mae Burton
Sarah Jeffery as Dolores Washington
Pepi Sonuga as Elaine White
Sarah Helbringer as Mary Kathryn
Jay Reeves as Private Hugh Bell
Jeanté Godlock as Vera Scott
Moriah Brown as Inez Bright
Gregg Sulkin as Abram David
Donna Biscoe as Emma Derriecott
Baadja-Lyne Odums as Susie
Jeffery Thomas Johnson as Colonel Davenport
Nick Harris as Chaplain Clemens

Production

It was announced in December 2022 that Tyler Perry would be writing and directing the film Six Triple Eight for Netflix.^[3] The film is based on historian Kevin M. Hymel's article, "Fighting a Two-Front War", published in the February 2019 issue of WWII History magazine.^[4] In January 2023, the cast, including Kerry Washington, Sam Waterston, Susan Sarandon and Oprah Winfrey was announced, with Washington also joining as an executive producer.^[5]

Filming began on January 17, 2023, in Atlanta.^[6] Production also occurred in Little Germany, Bradford and at Imperial War Museum Duxford in February.^[7]^[8] Filming took place in Cedartown, Georgia on March 28, 2023.^[9]

Music

The film score was composed by Aaron Zigman, who had previously scored 13 Perry films, starting with Why Did I Get Married? (2007), in collaboration with music supervisor Joel C. High, film editor Maysie Hoy, and music editor Johnny Caruso.^[10] For The Six Triple Eight, Zigman was influenced by the big band era, as well as composers Aaron Copland and Samuel Barber, with most of his creative process being done at the piano. The first cue written for the film was for the scene where the battalion come off the ship after arriving in Europe.^[10] The Six Triple Eight (Soundtrack from the Netflix Film) was released digitally on December 6, 2024, through Netflix Music. "The Journey", the song that plays over the film's end credits, was written by Diane Warren and performed by H.E.R., who also played guitar and piano on the track.^[11]^[12] The ballad was previously used to soundtrack ESPN's coverage of the 2023 NBA Finals.^[13] A music video, featuring H.E.R. performing in concert intercut with clips from the film, was released in November 2024.^[14] For the 97th Academy Awards, Zigman's score was shortlisted in the category of Best Original Score while Warren's "The Journey" was shortlisted in the category of Best Original Song.^[15]

All tracks are written by Aaron Zigman.

*The Six Triple Eight (Soundtrack from the Netflix Film)* track listing
No.	Title	Length
1.	"Trenches"	2:55
2.	"Kiss Me"	1:38
3.	"Mail Delivery"	1:02
4.	"Abram Letter"	1:52
5.	"Boarding the Train"	1:15
6.	"Women Arriving at Camp"	2:49
7.	"Capt. Adams Addresses the Troops"	2:14
8.	"Eleanor Roosevelt"	0:58
9.	"Gas Chamber"	2:03
10.	"Mary McLeod Bethune Speaks"	2:09
11.	"Training Montage"	1:19
12.	"Movie Theatre Confrontation"	1:29
13.	"Orders"	0:54
14.	"Appropriate Accommodations"	1:04
15.	"Flashback"	0:50
16.	"Arriving in England"	4:20
17.	"This Is Our Mission"	1:25
18.	"Letters and Friendship"	1:15
19.	"Lena, You're a Soldier"	1:27
20.	"Jigsaw Puzzle"	1:44
21.	"Evil Women"	1:18
22.	"Lena Has a Realization"	2:03
23.	"UEXB"	0:51
24.	"Abram's Letter"	1:12
25.	"Finding Abram"	4:26
26.	"General Calls HQ"	4:28
27.	"Bonus Track"	4:27

Release

In February 2024, Six Triple Eight was reported to be part of Netflix's 2024 release calendar, with a specific date yet to be announced.^[16]^[17]^[18] In August 2024, Netflix announced that the film, now titled The Six Triple Eight, would be released in a limited theatrical release on December 6, 2024, with a streaming release two weeks later on December 20 on Netflix.^[19]

Reception

Critical reception

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 50% of 42 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 5.4/10.^[20] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 51 out of 100, based on 14 critics, indicating "mixed or average" reviews.^[21]

Film critic Peter Debruge from Variety gave it a positive review, writing: "The Six Triple Eight gives Perry his best and most substantial feature to date (only 2010's ensemble melodrama For Colored Girls comes close)... The film boasts a large enough cast to launch a dozen or so careers, and yet, one performance stands head and shoulders above the others: That would be Washington's forceful turn as Adams, who holds her own against arrogant white officers."^[22] Frank Scheck from The Hollywood Reporter also gave it a positive review, praising Obsidian and Washington's performances.^[23] Jesse Hassenger from The Guardian gave it 2/5 stars, writing: "Kerry Washington hams it up in the writer-director's stodgy ode to a battalion of women in the second world war who deserve far better".^[24]

Accolades

Award	Date of ceremony	Category	Recipient(s)	Result	Ref.
Hollywood Music in Media Awards	November 20, 2024	Original Score – Feature Film	Aaron Zigman	Nominated	^[25]
Hollywood Music in Media Awards	November 20, 2024	Best Original Song – Feature Film	"The Journey" – Diane Warren; Performed by H.E.R.	Won	^[25]
Celebration of Cinema and Television	December 9, 2024	Icon Award	Tyler Perry	Won	^[26]
African-American Film Critics Association	February 19, 2025	Beacon Award	Nicole Avant	Honored^[a]	^[27]