Fun
Frisky
Nostalgic
Intense
Adventurous
Choked Up
Curious
Romantic
Weird
A few months ago, our own Tyler Coates asked a simple question: “Where the Hell is Mo’Nique?”
He pointed out that since she won an Academy Award for her blistering performance as an abusive mother, she has been just about AWOL from film and television. He even went so far as to imagine how much better celebrate films like Boyhood and Interstellar would have been with a injection of fun from the brilliant Mo’Nique. We heard from her then and here is what she had to say:
Mo’Nique is finally speaking out about why she has abandoned us over the last five years. It turns out she was “blackballed.”
The actress and comedian told The Hollywood Reporter that “I got a phone call from Lee Daniels maybe six or seven months ago. 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.'” Mo’Nique went on to say that Daniels had offered her plum roles in The Butler and on Empire, but those offers will swiftly — and mysteriously — pulled off the table.
However, there is hope: Mo’Nique is returning to cinema with an independent feature called Blackbird, which will debut on April 24. She also fired shots at her critics by saying, “Whoever those people are who say, ‘Mo’Nique is difficult,’ those people are either heartless, ruthless or treat people like they’re worthless. And that’s unacceptable.”
“You don’t let people mistreat you. You stand up for what’s right.”
And now, a look at the year in cinema that might have been:
Look at how fun it would have been if Mo’Nique had appeared in Boyhood.
We’re sure that Mo’Nique would have kept her cool on that crazy wave planet in Interstellar.
Birdman could have had so much more joy and frivolity in it if Mo’Nique had been on hand.
Come back to us, Mo’Nique! We love you!
Like what you see? Follow Decider on Facebook and Twitter to join the conversation, and sign up for our email newsletters to be the first to know about streaming movies and TV news!
[Photos: Everett Collection, Art: Jaclyn Kessel]
