her deep connection to Hattie McDaniel, the first African American to
win an Oscar; and more. But the topic on everyone's lips is Mo'Nique's
claim that Lee Daniels told her she has been "blackballed" in
Hollywood, and that's why she hasn't scored major roles since her Oscar
win for Lee's movie Precious in 2010. "I got a phone call from Lee Daniels maybe six or seven months ago," she explained. "And he said to me, 'Mo'Nique,
you've been blackballed.' And I said, 'I've been blackballed? Why have I
been blackballed?' And he said, 'Because you didn't play the game.' And
I said, 'Well, what game is that?' And he gave me no response." In the
discussion that follows, Mo'Nique actually suggests why she's been shut
out of roles, although the chat raises more questions than it answers.
Keep reading to discover the reasons why her claim is confusing.
- According to Mo'Nique, Lee told her money was part of the issue: " .
. . [He said to me], 'Your husband is outbidding you.' But he never
asked me what [salary] we were asking for." - However, Mo'Nique also made it clear that independence with
projects is important to her: "You know, my husband [actor and producer
Sidney Hicks] and I had to change things so we wouldn't have to depend
on [others]. So we do it independently. We're very proud of taking the
independent route, and we have a movie coming out on April 24 called Blackbird." - The actress surmises that people might think she's too difficult to
work with: "There have been people that have said, Mo'Nique, she can be
difficult. Mo'Nique and her husband can be difficult." They could
probably be right. One of the networks said to [Lee] that I was "really
difficult to work with." And I said, "Well, that's funny, because I've
never even worked with them, but OK.'" - Even though she's been "blackballed," Mo'Nique has still had
discussions about parts in Lee's recent projects: "Well, actually, I was
offered the role in The Butler that Oprah Winfrey played. I was also approached by Empire to be on Empire.
And I was also offered the role as Richard Pryor's grandmother in
[Daniels's upcoming Pryor biopic]. Each of those things that he offered
me was taken off the table. (Laughs.) They all just went away. But
that's just part of the business, you know? I can't be upset at anybody,
'cause life is too good. It's just what it is." - Mo'Nique said Lee was the one who reached out to her with roles:
"For each of the roles, [Lee] called me. He's always approached me
first, and I'm appreciative of it, because I think he is one of the most
brilliant visionaries in writing and directing."
And yet Lee suggests that hiring Mo'Nique is out of his control:
"Mo'nique is a creative force to be reckoned with. Her demands through Precious
were not always in line with the campaign. This soured her relationship
with the Hollywood community. I consider her a friend. I have and will
always think of her for parts that we can collaborate on. However, the
consensus among the creative teams and powers thus far were to go
another way with these roles."
Source: Getty / Dan MacMedan
| POPSUGAR Celebrity
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