It鈥檚 not a secret that Fantasia Barrino did not want to play Celie again. The 鈥淎merican Idol鈥� winner hadn鈥檛 had the best time doing 鈥淭he Color Purple鈥� on Broadway.
The protagonist of Alice Walker鈥檚 Pulitzer Prize-winning novel tells her story of sexual, physical and psychological abuses in the early 20th century South in a series of letters to God. And it was a character she found it difficult to leave behind at the end of the day. Even the prospect of starring in her first major motion picture didn鈥檛 seem worth it.
But director Blitz Bazawule : He wanted to give Celie an imagination. This Barrino found intriguing.
鈥淥nce she understood the assignment, she quickly agreed," Bazawule said in a recent interview with The Associated Press.
Now, four decades after 鈥淭he Color Purple鈥� became a literary sensation and a Steven Spielberg film, the . This time it鈥檚 a grand, big budget Warner Bros. musical starring Barrino, Taraji P. Henson, as the sultry singer Shug Avery, and Danielle Brooks, reprising her Broadway role as the strong-willed Sofia. It opens in theaters nationwide on Christmas.
鈥淚鈥檓 glad that I didn鈥檛 allow my fear of my past experience with Celie, because of where my life was at that time, to hinder me from doing something is great,鈥� Barrino said. 鈥淚鈥檓 riding on a high right now.鈥�
is one of several big-name producers on 鈥淭he Color Purple,鈥� alongside Spielberg, Quincy Jones and Scott Sanders. Winfrey got her acting break and first Oscar nomination playing Sofia in the 1985 adaptation, before helping Sanders turn it into a Broadway musical 20 years later.
Bazawule was not an obvious candidate to direct this film, however. The multi-hyphenate Ghanaian artist had received acclaim and recognition for co-directing Beyonc茅鈥檚 visual album 鈥淏lack is King.鈥� The only other film he had under his belt was the microbudget 鈥淭he Burial Of Kojo,鈥� which was made for less than $100,000.
But he had ambitious ideas involving large scale musical numbers that would take audiences on a dazzling journey through the history of Black music in America, from gospel to blues to jazz. And, of course, Celie鈥檚 inner life. He wasn鈥檛 at all sure he would get it, but he knew the story he wanted to tell.
鈥淚 thought, if I could just find a way to show the audience how this Black woman from the rural South was able to imagine her way out of pain and trauma it will debunk a myth that is that people who have dealt with abusing trauma are docile and passive or waiting to be saved,鈥� Bazawule said. 鈥淚f we could just imbue in (Celie) that scale, then that鈥檚 the version that needed to exist. Thankfully they said yes.鈥�
They would have to jump through some hoops, however, to secure the kind of budget (reportedly around $100 million) that they needed to support the vision, including auditioning Henson, an Oscar-nominated actor, and Brooks, who already had a Tony nomination for her portrayal of Sofia.
鈥淲e were not the studio鈥檚 choices鈥� Henson said. 鈥淚 just felt some way about having to audition. I鈥檓 Academy Award nominated. I had just got finished singing on NBC鈥檚 鈥楢nnie Live.鈥� But I checked my ego and I did it. I went in as Shug. I found a dress, had a flower in my hair and faux fur stole and I kicked the door down because I didn鈥檛 want them to ever second guess me again.鈥�
For Brooks, it was a six-month process that had her doubting herself. A lot of the people involved in 鈥淭he Color Purple鈥� felt the exhaustion of both having to prove themselves yet again, but also wanting to rise to the challenge nonetheless because this film was worth it.
鈥淭his is a huge undertaking to be part of,鈥� said Brooks. 鈥淭his movie is about legacy and it鈥檚 what I鈥檝e been calling a cinematic heirloom.鈥�
Her Broadway production was very minimalist and stripped down, so to be on location in Georgia, around Macon, Savannah, Atlanta and the small town of Grantville, was revelatory.
鈥淢y world really opened up because I got to use all of my senses,鈥� Brooks said. 鈥淚 got to explore all of Sofia because now I have a juke joint and I have a dinner table. I have a house. We had a white mob attacking me.鈥�
The juke joint was a real set that required a real swamp to be dredged, where they鈥檇 stage Shug鈥檚 showstopper, 鈥淧ush Da Button.鈥�
鈥淚t鈥檚 probably the perfect confluence of my amazing technical and creative teams,鈥� Bazawule said.
The film gives a new boldness to Celie and Shug鈥檚 relationship with one another and more dimensions to the male characters, including Mister.
And all carry the weight of responsibility not only to the material and its predecessors, but also to future films made with primarily Black casts at this level.
鈥淚t鈥檚 not the first time I have been in a production of this scale but what matters to me is that it鈥檚 a Black production and it鈥檚 a production with Black producer, a Black director, predominately Black cast,鈥� Henson said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 like usually we鈥檙e supposed to make a dollar out of 15 cents. And after 20+ in the game, it鈥檚 like finally the studio trusted us to deliver.鈥�
The question of awards is a loaded one. Though 鈥淭he Color Purple鈥� has all the makings of a big Oscar contender (Barrino and Brooks have already been nominated for Golden Globes), it comes with history. Spielberg鈥檚 film was nominated for 11 Oscars and infamously won none. And then there is the even stickier subject of Black women and Hollywood awards. Halle Berry remains the only Black best actress Oscar winner.
Bazawule is not particularly interested in the 鈥渄og and pony show鈥� of awards season. It鈥檚 hard for him to fathom how anyone can pit one film against another, but he does understand that there are real gains in earning potential and creative freedom that happen if his actors, especially the women, get nominated and win.
"Our job was to go in and honor Alice Walker鈥檚 brilliant book. We did that. We found our healing through it and we鈥檙e an amazing group together. Our Q&A鈥檚 are out of this world,鈥� he said, before taking a pause. 鈥淣ow THAT I want and award for.鈥�
All seem to agree that what they experienced is bigger than any validation from an award.
鈥淭here鈥檚 something magical about this story,鈥� Brooks said. 鈥淚t really does tamper with your heart in the best way. It opens it up. I鈥檝e never experienced anything like what I鈥檝e experienced during the journey of working on 鈥楾he Color Purple.鈥欌��
Lindsey Bahr, The Associated Press
