Universal’s new romantic comedy feature You, me and Tuscany Many people feel that their future opportunities could be linked to its success – not even those who have anything to do with the film.
Director Kat Coiro’s film stars Halle Bailey as a chef who secretly begins living in a vacant Italian villa and develops feelings for the landlord’s cousin (Régé-Jean Page). Hollywood Reporter The review deemed the film an “engaging” escapist fantasy, likely headed to a box office opening of just under $10 million.
But the mere fact that the film received a theatrical release sparked celebration on social media, as fans of the genre noted that a romantic film with black leads had not made it to the big screen since 2012. Think like a man. The topic sparked controversy with director Nina Lee’s post last month, which appears to be being used by industry decision-makers “You, me and Tuscany”The impending box office result to determine whether to move forward with other romantic projects with black stars: “I met with a studio about my romantic comedy that had already been shot and they wouldn’t buy it until they saw how You, me and Tuscany “He does.”
Will Packer, the film’s producer behind You, me and Tuscany, Think like a man, Girls trip, Ride along And other titles, he says THR The challenge of getting such features into theaters stems not only from the industry’s “extremely poor track record when it comes to films highlighting diverse threads,” but also that rom-coms have been deemed a genre that could be relegated to streaming Netflix shows or TV movies over the course of life.
“Make no mistake: I remember the golden age of romantic comedies, and even black romantic comedies — Love and basketball, Best man, Think like a man, Brown sugar, Two can play that game“You name it,” Packer says. “Audiences have been showing up in theaters and enjoying these movies. So people have to understand that Hollywood is a reactive industry, and there’s an opportunity to say that these kinds of movies — with these kinds of main characters, and with audiences who enjoy these kinds of movies — are profitable and worth making, and Hollywood will make more of them.”
He tells me THR That movie she was referring to – This is itwhich was announced this week as premiering next month at the American Black Film Festival in Miami — was self-financed by the film’s star, DeWayne Colley, better known as creator Kountry Wayne. Lee points out that up-and-coming filmmakers are advised to go ahead and film their own projects independently, but there’s no direct path to next steps.
“I was really frustrated because, whether you’re black or a woman, the feedback people always tell us is, ‘If no studio wants to pick up your script, shoot it yourself,’” the director says. This is itThat’s what we did, but the conversation has to go further than just filming it yourself. What happens next? Everyone says, “Shoot the movie yourself, and the studios will come,” and that’s not what happened. I still believe this will happen, but we have to change the advice we give people. Shooting yourself isn’t enough anymore.
Brandi Monk Payton is a professor of communication and media studies at Fordham University and a contributor to the book Watch while Black replayspoints out that Hollywood apparently needs constant reminders of the purchasing power of underrepresented groups. It highlights the recent theatrical successes of such original films with black actors such as Sinnerswhich was a box office and Oscar winner, along with the Keke Palmer-directed comedy One day of them A sequel is in the works.
“There’s definitely a burden of representation where you put all this weight and pressure on one cinematic vehicle in order to provide the conditions of possibility for others,” Monk Payton says. “This is something that is very familiar to Black creatives, where they feel as though their hopes, dreams and aspirations are centered on one project.”
Lee noted that as she dealt with trolls on social media who claimed she was trying to do just that TuscanyFollowing her release, she is grateful to fellow filmmakers who expressed their appreciation for hearing her personal experience.
“It was never my intention to leave my little Twitter community,” Lee says of her initial viral post. “But I’ve talked to Will Packer and a few other people, and they’re all grateful for the conversation this has started. I’ve got to take comfort in that and keep moving forward.”
