'Orange Is the New Black' Is Bringing #BlackLivesMatter to Litchfield in Season 4

After similarly bold moves from 'Scandal' and 'black-ish,' Netflix's ‘Orange Is the New Black’ will tackle #BlackLivesMatter.

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When Orange Is the New Black returns later this month for another highly bingeworthy look at the Litchfield Penitentiary life, the show will take a timely look at one of the nation's most pressing societal issues. The Netflix original series' fourth season will include a prominent story line that reflects the ongoing #BlackLivesMatter movement, according to the Hollywood Reporter.

"This season is definitely going to start up conversations that we're dealing with now," Selenis Leyva, a.k.a. Gloria Mendoza, told THR Wednesday. "That's the beauty of what [series creator Jenji Kohan] does with the writers. They really take things that are happening, that are current events, and deal with topics that people are afraid to really dive into. And we're going to go there this season, especially with the prison system.​"

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The new season will center on an "unprecedented culture war" that breaks out at Litchfield after fresh prison guard recruits start brutalizing inmates, ultimately bringing the #BlackLivesMatter movement to the forefront. The series' welcomed inclusion of current events follows similarly bold moves from ABC's Scandal and the Peabody-winning black-ish, which took a rousing approach to addressing police brutality and the President Barack Obama's "Hope" campaign in February:

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Orange Is the New Black, returning June 17, was recently given a three-year extension by Netflix bosses following the series' continued success. "Three more years!" Kohan said when announcing the renewal. "Not quite a political term, but still plenty of time to do some interesting things. In some cultures, 'May you lead an interesting life,' is a curse, but I don't live in those cultures. Here's to keeping it interesting."

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