I first heard about the film Hustlers on Twitter— I write the Justice Hustlers series of sex worker heist novels for Kensington Books, and, struck by the similarities, several readers had reached out to ask if my work had been adapted for the big screen.
Some even wondered if my premise had been stolen. Neither one is true, although there has been some Hollywood interest in adapting my series for television. But the Hustlers film was adapted and directed by Lorene Scafaria, and is based on a true story. There are many similarities between Hustlers and my Justice Hustlers series. First of all, they are both stories of sex workers-turned-thieves with a brilliant and charismatic Latina crime boss. They both have an epicenter in New York City and both involve robbing wealthy white executives.
Both stories center women of color, focusing on how women build family and take care of each other. But the biggest difference between Hustlers and Justice Hustlers is just that—the Justice part.
Hustlers is complex, because it follows a group of women who simultaneously pose a threat to capitalism, but are also unabashed entrepreneurs and consumers. The story opens prior to the financial crash of These women enjoy their strip club workplace: everyone is making money, and the compensation and camaraderie outweigh the exploitation and indignities built into the system.
After the crash, however, the industry shifts. Dancers can no longer make a living without selling sexual services. In this new landscape, Ramona played by Jennifer Lopez begins a hustle of picking up men and bringing them to the club, then taking home a cut of everything they spend. Eventually the hustle escalates to drugging the men and maxing out their credit cards and hiring full-service sex workers to serve them in hotels. She takes Destiny Constance Wu under her wing for her new hustle, just like she did when they danced together at the strip club during the good times.
