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Who’s The Boss?
Watch on Deadline
DEADLINE:How long did it take to put this documentary together?
REGINALD HUDLIN:I first met with Jamie [Foxx] and Datari [Turner] in 2019.
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DEADLINE:Talk a bit more about unearthing some of these archival photos and footage.
They found amazing footage from these folks careers.
SHOLA LYNCH:Also to add more to the timeline.
Denzel Washington in ‘Number One on the Call Sheet’Apple TV+
I mean, we need to consider how we talked to all these people who are so busy.
Scheduling was a nightmare [laughs].
And it was so unrealistic to think that they were going to be just available waiting for us.
Our teams killed it for unearth these headlines, photos, and texture of these actresses careers.
How did you both figure out the stylization?
HUDLIN:Heres the thing.
We each made the movie in the way that we thought was best.
Im not going to tell Shola what to do.
So, guess whats not needed?
Me telling her what to do [laughs].
To me, the strength of the project is that everyones voice is heard fully.
These are two documentary films.
I think its wonderful if you watch whatever one; we did not conform to a corporate formula.
I want to stress that this film would not have happened without Black production companies.
They took their celebrity power and made an opportunity.
DEADLINE:What shocked or resonated with you the most during the making of the documentary?
HUDLIN:There are so many, but Ill name a few.
Laurence Fishburne talking about shootingApocalypse Now.
And then getting support from the star [Martin Sheen] who said to him, No, no.
Youre a talented actor.
I thought to myself, Oh my God, what a beautiful, beautiful moment.
Kevin Hart going in detail about one failure after the other in his career is another.
The lesson in that is that he never externalized blame.
He always said, How can I get better?
Which is what he did and how he became who he is now.
LYNCH:This is impossible.
And the interviews, to me, are everything because theyre the connective tissue.
All of my favorite moments are actually in the film.
If I had to choose, the singular thing that surprised me is how inspiring the actors are.
Now, I always ask myself, am I walking in my purpose?
Am I being number one on my call sheet?
How do we stay in it long enough to be number one and impact the business?
You could feel the truth in what theyre saying.
And weve watched it play in front of audiences now, and people cry and laugh a lot.
A lot of people at the end of the screening dont stay for the after-party.
They literally say, Ive got to go home and go to work.
Literally, like, Ive been messing around, and Ive got to get that project going.
What am I doing?
So that is a very common effect.
We are rarely seen and heard in the media landscape.
Talk about why it was important to include them in the narrative.
Well, who cares?
Thats just East Coast versus West Coast with an ocean in the middle.
We were interested in the Black women [and men] that had penetrated Hollywood.
Im not going to exclude Cynthia [Erivo] or Ruth [Negga] just because theyre not American.
Theyve both been nominated [for Oscars].
They both have been leading ladies and carried major pictures.
Ill add to what Reggie said.
Black is the word because were part of the diaspora.
DEADLINE:What does the future of Black film look like to both of you?
The mens documentary concludes that things are on the upswing for Black people in the media.
Talk a bit more regarding the state of the industry.
I say, no, not at all.
You go, Oh, look at that.
How do we replicate and increase whats working and do less of what doesnt work?
And what, quote unquote, works and doesnt work is a complex question.
Things are better, but there are still challenges.
And you go, Oh, is that true?
That could be really cornball, but part of it is the culture reflects the era youre in.
But my short answer to a very simple question is that things are better.
LYNCH:I agree with all that.
Especially as a Black woman, there is no other era that I would want to live in.
First of all, I wouldnt be directing.
At the same time, there are things to change, and so both things can always be true.
I get so frustrated with people who are like, Oh, yeah, I wouldnt do that.
We opt out of opportunities because theyre not the best.
What if Kevin Hart had quit?
And so, I think the future is what we make of it, and theres work to do.
But I love what Whoopi says.
Were not going anywhere.
