Oprah Winfrey reflects on her time as Sofia in Alice Walker The colour purple for the 1985 original and said it was still one of the best and most meaningful paychecks she ever earned.
Winfrey, an executive producer of the upcoming movie musical, met with several members of the film’s main cast back in May before the SAG-AFTRA strike beings Cover story. During the roundtable-style conversation, the actresses — including Fantasia Barrino, Danielle Brooks, Taraji P. Henson and HER — talked about following in the footsteps of the 1985 cast and why they worked on (or directed) the stage musical below) and their reactions to the news that they had been cast.
During the interview, Brooks thanked Winfrey – who played her character Sofia in the 1985 Steven Spielberg-directed adaptation – for “giving me space but also being there, holding my hand and answering the phone when I needed you.” Winfrey responded by thanking the entire cast before expressing her personal joy and appreciation for starring in the film.
“I can’t tell you what it means to me – a person who wanted nothing more in my life than to be there The colour purple. And God taught me to surrender – that was the big lesson for me,” said the media mogul. “They only offered $35,000 to be in this film, and it’s the best $35,000 I’ve ever made. It changed everything and taught me so much. It is God who walks through my life.”
Winfrey went on to explain how personally meaningful it was to bring the story back to the screen with her talented cast. “It means so much that all of you beautiful black women are witnesses to history as history moves forward,” she explained. “I believe that what Fantasia said is true: everyone who sees our film will be touched. They are postponed. And they will be healed.”
During the discussion, Barrino discussed the difficulties of taking on her role as Celie, sharing that she almost turned it down. “At first I didn’t want to take the role – because I knew I had to intervene in some things I had buried,” she said. “But I had a great cast supporting me.”
The other women also spoke about the emotional difficulty of stepping into their roles, with Henson pointing out that “it can be triggering when you’re doing something that difficult. You have to learn to live between takes.”
“It’s the sacrifice you make for art sometimes, right?” SHE added: “As storytellers, we take those opportunities and tell our stories in different ways, and that’s for a greater good.” You never know how many People you influence.”
Barrino said that while the journey was difficult, she “came out healed.” I’m glad I did it. I’m free of some things I’ve been holding on to.”
Source : www.hollywoodreporter.com