What a time to be alive for Mo’Nique! Her highly-anticipated Netflix stand-up comedy special is on the way, her acting career is flourishing, and her family is thriving.
I’m grateful for that feeling. When you are good on the inside, I believe it shows up on the outside.
It’s a new chapter, but not because of Hollywood. It’s a new chapter because my babies are graduating high school.
It’s a new chapter because my grandson will be going to kindergarten next year, and my granddaughter to the fifth grade. Those things, for me, are the priority.
In an awesome interview with The Hollywood Reporter, the comedian, and Oscar-winning actress talks about a number of things including her special friendship with Roseanne Barr, forgiving Lee Daniels and mending their friendship, and growing out of her open marriage to Sidney Hicks.
Read a few quotes from Mo’Nique’s interview below.
Mo’Nique opened up about her special friendship with comedian and actress Roseanne Barr, who she met in 2009 when she was a guest on “The Mo’Nique Show.”
Through the years, that woman has been right there. Never flinching, never wavering. We didn’t get caught up in what anybody else thought or anybody else said. I’m grateful for our friendship.
When Roseanne was fired from her show following her remarks about former Barack Obama senior adviser Valerie Jarrett, Mo’Nique wanted to come to her defense.
She didn’t want me to get hurt defending her. I said, ‘I will stand for right, all day long.
Whatever happens with us standing with my sister named Roseanne Barr, let the chips fall where they may.’
But what I will not do is turn my back on somebody that I know is not a racist.
Mo’Nique also shared that she has grown out of her open marriage with Sidney Hicks.
READ: Mo’Nique Says Having An Open Marriage Was Her Idea – ‘From Time To Time I Like To F**k Other N***as!’ (Video)
Having an open marriage was originally her idea, but both of them have calmed down with their extramarital activities.
Life began to happen. I began to see a strength I had never seen before.
He loved me at my worst. I didn’t want to sacrifice that just for a lay.
So I grew out of that.
It was Mo’Nique’s role in The Reading that ultimately led to her forgiving, reconciling, and restoring her friendship with director Lee Daniels.
When Sidney Hicks wasn’t happy with the first cut of the film, the filmmaker Courtney Glaude, called in a favor to Lee Daniels to take a look at it.
Lee stepped in and spent the next five months working with Courtney on editing the film.
Mo’Nique was moved by Lee Daniels’ gesture.
He did not have to edit this film. So we asked Lee if he would take a producer credit and give him a percentage of the film.
Because what he did was beautiful.
I think that speaks volumes. It really does.
In that same phone call, Lee offered Mo’Nique a role in The Deliverance, but she pumped his brakes and told him they needed to talk about everything that has happened between them.
He was like, ‘OK, so I want to talk to you about this part.’ I said, ‘Lee, we can’t talk about a part until we talk.’ And he was like, ‘I know.’
And then we had a real conversation. That was the moment that he said, ‘I’m going to apologize to you and your family for anything I’ve done to hurt y’all.’
And what I said to him was, ‘I appreciate that and we are grateful for the apology.
But because it happened publicly, you have got to apologize publicly.’ And you know what he says? ‘Tell me when and where.’
That conversation resulted in Lee Daniels publicly apologizing to Mo’Nique during her comedy show at Staten Island’s St. George Theatre.
READ: ‘Snowfall’ Star Amin Joseph Shares Why Mo’Nique Is His Heart
When it comes to her forthcoming stand-up comedy special, “My Name Is Mo’Nique” at Netflix, she kept it real cute saying:
We sat down with our attorneys, they had their attorneys, you go to mediation, and we were able to come up with something that everybody was good with.
I think when adults come together in the room and sit down and have a reasonable conversation and a logical conversation, you work things out.
Read Mo’Nique’s full interview at The Hollywood Reporter.
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