She’s back on track after allegedly being blackballed by the industry, and Mo’Nique is demanding her recompense. For years, Mo’Nique has been open about the tension involving Tyler Perry, Lee Daniels, and Oprah Winfrey. She claims she was tagged with the reputation of being difficult to deal with and insisted the trio was behind a plot to stifle her career. There has been silence from Winfrey’s camp, and Perry seemed to acknowledge Mo’Nique’s criticisms. Eventually, Daniels emerged with a public apology and interrupted one of Mo’Nique’s shows to deliver.
After mending past rifts, Daniels cast the Oscar-winning actress in BET+’s The Reading. The pair, who also worked on Precious together, caught up with The Hollywood Reporter and detailed their reunion. “Not only did I want to reach out to her, but I realized I wanted to work with her again. It’s crazy, sometimes, how life is.” When he called, it had been 13 years since Mo’Nique spoke with him. Daniels had been editing a film that Mo’Nique worked on years prior, and it reminded him of how talented she was.
Mo’Nique and Lee Daniels Come To Terms
“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.’” He decided to do it on a public platform that would undoubtedly be recorded and shared with the world. “There was no way that I was not going to apologize for anything that she thought that I did to her.”
“I don’t know if it’s ever been done in history — that a big Hollywood director came out and apologized to an actress for a wrongdoing,” said Mo’Nique. Daniels added, “I’m just happy to have my friend back.” However, the actress still “demands” an apology from Winfrey and Perry. She also touched on her beef with D.L. Hughley that erupted after she claimed he was upset about her receiving equal top billing at a comedy show. Amid the controversy, and after mentioning the abuse Hughley’s daughter endured, Mo’Nique stood by her comments.
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