What was Beyoncé’s first film role as a lead actress?

Beyoncé’s first lead film role was in Carmen: A Hip Hopera.

The 2001 MTV television film Carmen: A Hip Hopera starred Beyoncé as Carmen Brown, a modern adaptation of the title character from Georges Bizet’s opera Carmen. The production relocated the story into a contemporary musical and hip-hop setting.

Beyoncé’s performance combined acting, singing, and dancing, skills that had already been central to her work with Destiny’s Child. The role preceded her better-known appearances in Austin Powers in Goldmember and Dreamgirls.

Dreamgirls is sometimes called her first major movie role because it brought substantial awards attention and a theatrical audience. However, Carmen: A Hip Hopera came earlier and is the specific answer when the question asks for her first lead acting role.