Viola Davis to star as Rep. Shirley Chisholm in Amazon movie

Viola Davis will star in the title role of "The Fighting Shirley Chisholm," about the Democratic Brooklyn congresswoman who was the first African-American female in the U.S. House of Representatives and the first African-American to make a major-party presidential primary bid.

Oscar, Emmy and Tony Award-winner Davis, 53, will also be a producer of the Amazon Studios film. Maggie Betts ("Novitiate") will direct.

"How to Get Away with Murder" star Davis currently appears in director Steve McQueen's "Widows" and in Amazon Studios' "Troupe Zero," which premieres at the upcoming Sundance Film Festival.