It still surprises me a little bit that Mo’nique ended up winning the Oscar for Best Support Actress in 2010. She won for her role as the abusive mother in Precious, and while her performance was widely acclaimed, Mo’nique’s Oscar campaign (or lack thereof) left something to be desired. Mo’nique very publicly stated that she would not campaign or do any behind-the-scenes work (attend screenings, shake hands, kiss babies) and that she wanted her performance to speak for itself. That strategy ended up winning her the Oscar, but it also alienated her from much of Hollywood. She was seen as someone unwilling to play the game. She was seen as rude and unwilling to pay her dues. Post-Oscar, Mo’nique hasn’t been doing much. And now, five years later, Mo’nique is talking about how she was blackballed from Hollywood.
Mo’nique claims that she now knows why the offers didn’t star flooding in after her big Oscar win in 2010. The former star of The Parkers, who won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role as the title character’s abusive, domineering mother in Precious, writes in an essay in the Feb. 27 issue of The Hollywood Reporter that director-producer Lee Daniels clued her in just a few months ago.
Noting that an Oscar win “normally does” lead to “more respect, choices, money” in the business, Mo’Nique writes, “But I got a phone call from Lee Daniels…And he said to me, ‘Mo’Nique, you’ve been blackballed.’ I said, ‘Why?’ And he said, ‘Because you didn’t play the game.'”
After steamrolling the competition throughout the 2009-10 awards season, Mo’Nique famously didn’t campaign for her Oscar, going on to say in her acceptance speech that she was grateful to the Academy “for showing that it can be about the performance and not the politics.”
“I said, ‘Well, what game is that?'” her THR piece continues. “He gave me no response.”
People who would say that she’s “difficult,” “tactless” or “tacky” would “probably be right,” the actress writes. “That’s why I have my beautiful husband because he’s so full of tact. I’m just a girl from Baltimore. But being from that place, you learn not to let anybody take advantage of you.”
Mo’Nique also writes that she was offered the role of Forest Whitaker’s wife in Lee Daniels’ The Butler, a part that ultimately went to Oprah Winfrey; a role in the Daniels-produced Fox hit Empire; and the role of Richard Pryor’s grandmother [also now set to be played by Oprah] in the upcoming biopic Daniels is working on—but, she adds, “they all just went away.”
In response to Mo’Nique, Daniels said in a statement to THR: “Mo’Nique is a creative force to be reckoned with. Her demands through Precious were not always in line with the campaign. This soured her relationship with the Hollywood community. I consider her a friend. I have and will always think of her for parts that we can collaborate on, however the consensus among the creative teams and powers thus far were to go another way with these roles.”
Do you think what happened to Mo’nique was unfair? Or was she justly labeled a “difficult” personality, not a team player, not worth the effort? I think she does have a chip on her shoulder, still, to this day. But lots of celebrities have difficult personalities – why does Mo’nique get blackballed and the other “difficult” actors get to work? Is it a racial thing? Or is it just an issue with an unpleasant personality mixed with being seen as “not having proved herself yet.” My take: she got in her own way during the 2010 Oscar season and she’s still getting in her own way. While she’s probably being honest in this essay, this isn’t going to win her any fans in the establishment.
Photos courtesy of WENN.
ugh its like the richest high school drama EVER.
so sad, all that money makes people nuts.
Totally. I feel like the Grinch because I am officially disgusted with the Oscars and everything it entails.
Is there an official ‘black balling’ letter that goes around, or just whispers to not work with so and so.
Me, too, mimif. I never realized until I started reading this site that it’s all about campaigning and sucking up and presenting a certain image. I naively thought it was about performance. I’ve totally lost respect for the whole process.
It’s a big bowling ball and it looks like this ⚫️.
And here was me thinking it was rather honourable to eschew campaigning and allow your work to be judged on its merits alone.
It just makes you want to give up, don’t it?
@Sixer: she didn’t exactly do that. She didn’t campaign because she didn’t get paid to campaign. She flat out said it during her Oscar run when people asked.
Got disillusioned with the Oscars years ago. about the time that Goop got an Oscar and Cate Blanchett didn’t. Now the sight of all those massive ego’s all silently screaming ‘look at me, look at me’ down the red carpet just makes me wince with embarrassment.
Campaigning is simply promoting the project you worked on. Think of all of the blood, sweat, and tears it took to get financing, to get Precious made…and then one of the lead players doesn’t want to do their part to get people to see the results of all of the hard work.
Honestly, I don’t fault producers and directors if they cast someone who is whole heartedly behind the project, instead of someone who just sees it as a paycheck. They want everyone to be as passionate as they are, or at least pretend to be.
I have seen interviews with her, and she is actually very well-read and grounded. That being said, I get the impression that Mo’Nique is not the most agreeable of personalities. She has famously butted heads with Oprah and Barbara Walters of all people—not that this is necessarily a bad thing. In a nutshell, she seems to operate with a no-BS policy that doesn’t play well on the PR front.
Yeah, but she wasn’t very tactful in her approach. Not only did she famously not campaign, but made it clear it was about money. I mean, even Joaquin Pheonix does the talk show rounds. On top of that, her Oscar speech offended everyone in the room who campaigned, offended her supporters whom she didn’t thank, she didn’t return the next year to present at the oscars cuz she wanted money for her appearance and now she’s outing Daniels as the one who told her she was blackballed. Her appearance on the carpet was awkward cuz she didn’t shave her legs and had attitude the whole way through. She totally got in her own way. There were also rumors of her husband being a nasty piece of work as well. Play the game then sh-t when ur on top, not on the way up.
I think it’s more that she didn’t campaign for the film itself either. As MCraw says: Joaquin Phoenix might not campaign for awards, but he is out there selling the movie and in the end that is expected from actors. You can’t have your cookie and eat it.
“I think it’s more that she didn’t campaign for the film itself either.”
Exactly.
She butted heads with Oprah and now Oprah has done two of the films she was offered? Sounds like Oprah might be part of her problem.
Did anybody else read that in Monique’s scratchy voice lol, Michael Fassbender doesn’t campaign and I am sure there are plenty others who don’t over do it. But Monique was simply difficult , she asked for extra money to promote and make certain appearances.
Yeah when I heard she asked to be paid (and talked about why, right or wrong) I knew she was doomed. The thing about Fassbender that people forget is that he was around! He went to Q&A’s, did magazine spreads, etc. he just didn’t do the extra “attend the opening of everything and kiss babies” that seems to be on the table. He’s also a fun interview and can sell. Monique deserved to win on merit, but once awards season is over and business starts up again? They want people who will play ball.
Exactly. I think when an actor is being paid as much as they are being paid, the promotion is part of the job. You want people to see your work, right? You want the movie to succeed so you get even more money and recognition, right? When she demanded compensation for basic promotional duties, she lost me. I’m actually surprised Lee Daniels still wants to work with her at all.
I imagine if you are difficult and have a lot of demands, and haven’t yet proven yourself with good box office numbers or many acclaimed roles, the opportunities are going to dry up. A lot of people don’t want to bother with someone who will cause problems, unless they’re “worth it” financially.
Fair or not, it’s the way of the world. My office has been working with a certain contractor for years, he does great work at a good price. But on the past few projects he was a giant pain in the ass, and caused so many problems simply from his attitude, that despite him being good at his job we no longer want to work with him. It’s just not worth the headaches.
I think it is the old double standard. When men are difficult it is laughed at (Joaquin Phoenix) when women are difficult they are a bitch.
Precious was an independent film and I am not sure she was paid much to make it. She has had a visible career but I don’t think she is stinking rich. Also, at the time of the Oscars she had the BET show and actually lost money to promote Precious.
I agree that writing an article that she was blackballed isn’t going to fix her problem. It shows she still hasn’t learned to play the game.
It is fine not to play the game but don’t expect to succeed in that field.
Joaquin nearly destroyed his career with his shenanigans, and the only reason why he didnt is because he is hands down one of the most talented actors of his generation and he works in tiny indie movie. That’s a terrible example to use.
I think you are discussing the movie he made with Affleck. and the fact that he made comments about Awards being a joke when he didn’t win. Now he is relegated only to work in Indie movies.
IMO he is not the most talented in his generation. I mean you do know Fassbender is in his generation right! PS. he doesn’t have an Oscar.
I’m sure she was paid next to nothing for the film, but that happens a lot with independent movies, and yet the actors generally still promote them, because it’s a stepping stone to the next project.
I’m sure Gabourey wasn’t paid much for it either, but she made the most of it, used the exposure to promote herself and the film, and has worked steadily ever since.
Some of the male actors have struggled from being difficult. Edward Norton, Mike Meyers, Val Kilmer, and a few others all had once huge careers become much more limited.
Edward Norton is the most similar example.He almost destroyed his career by his attitude during the filming,the production and the promotion on several movies.he again works because he changed his attitude
Denise: did you notice I said that it wasn’t a good comparison? Mo’nique and Phoenix are two entirely different scenarios.
And just to note, Phoenix hasn’t been banished to Indies – this is the guy that turns down Dr. Strange. Marvel is about as un-indie as you can get.
It’s simple, she doesn’t want to kiss Hollywood’s ass 24/7 like Reese or Cumberbitch. I like her for that.
That wasn’t just it, though. Monique’s reputation is akin to Katherine Heigl – both in temperament and their management. Monique’s husband (whom she ironically cites as the voice of reason) is a supposed arsehole, like Heigl’s momager, and he manages her career. My guess is that Monique didn’t get blackballed, so much as she and her husband turned everyone off and no one wanted to work with them for that reason.
It’s the way the world works. Sure, she can refuse to “kiss ass” as you say, but she won’t get any acting gigs. If you don’t play the game, don’t cry over the outcome.
So then she shouldn’t complain that she’s been “blackballed” for not playing the game. No one OWES her roles in movies. If you want to work in that business, you need to be grateful for every part, every role, and grateful to the people who put you in that role. Especially when you are a D-E-F list entertainer who gets the role of a lifetime and gets nominated and WINS an Academy Award! This entitlement attitude just doesn’t work in H’wood. If you’ve ever been to an award show, the people who are nominated have an “aura” of thankfulness about them that shines onto everyone around them, because they are not only grateful to be working in that industry, but grateful to be recognized for their work. Her attitude completely stank.
Many People see campaigning as something done just for the actress/actor to win an award but it’s also huge publicity for the movie. There’s more than just the box office , they are also counting on the buzz to carry over when the film comes out on DVD , iTunes etc. It also brings Publicity for the writers, directors… These actresses/actors get an obscene amount of money to do a job and I am sure they are expected to play the game even if not told directly. I totally see where she is coming from but on the same hand she kind of made her bed. Hollywood is a messed up place but you know that going in.
Good point. I like Moni’que and I would pay to see a movie she was in, but that movie has to get made first. In any type of business, movies or anything else, you have to play the game if you want to get ahead.
You get criticized if you do campaign, you get criticized if you don’t. The studio spends millions on these campaigns, I can see why they would not be happy with an actor who won’t play his/her part.
I saw one of the Dallas Buyer’s Club producers recently posted a tweet saying what a shame it is that you can’t win awards without spending tons of money. What does it really mean then, if you are virtually buying your way in?
I don’t know if you are buying your way in…you are buying the opportunity to get people to put their eyeballs on your product for 3 hours.
In this busy day and age, it is so hard to get people to commit to watching every decent film. If a voter only has time to watch 7 movies during award season, you want them to have enough interest in your film to make it into that group of 7. Otherwise, the product of your hard work has no chance.
Plenty of (white, male) actors have criticized the Academy and have publicly talked about refusing to campaign, but it hasn’t affected their careers. Hmmm, I wonder why.
Yes but they’re not refusing to appear at events to promote the movie unless they get paid. She openly did that. Nothing racial there, just that she has refuses to navigate her field as her peers do.
@Joy
Not buying it. Sorry not sorry.
So asking to get paid for something is really what took it over the edge? Is that what you truly believe ?
Actually, not that many white, male actors who are in that conversation truly don’t campaign, and they are much higher caliber of actors than Mo’nique. Look at the names that are being mentioned: Bale, Phoenix, Fassbender. She’s not in that league, and these are all men that are hired because they’re the best and worth any difficulty. And even then, the only one that truly doesn’t campaign is Phoenix. Bale certainly played the game. Need we also mention, Mo’Nique still won the award, and these parts that she’s being considered for are produced by black individuals, while she shot herself in the foot.
Exactly. You don’t just do it for yourself, you do it for everyone who worked on the movie. From the art department, make-up artist, costume designer… to the editor, cinematographer DP… for the people who don’t have a voice to sell the movie. And for your DIRECTOR, producers, for the studio, who (HINT HINT) are the people who HIRED you and can either get you more jobs, or tell everyone in town to NEVER hire you again, because you’re not a team player.
Campaigning sucks, it’s weird, but you can, I don’t know, do it tastefully? Unless you have Harvey Weinstein riding your ass, you don’t have to go overboard.
Wasn’t the story was that Monique was not going to show up to promote the part unless she was paid? – I think she said something to that effect herself
Yes.
She’s re-writing history here. Monique refused to do promotional and campaign work that she wasn’t paid to do, and flat out said so in interviews. She won the Oscar because her performance really was that good, but she can’t be surprised that people don’t want to hire her after that. And Oscar campaigning is also one giant networking opportunity – that’s part of why the offers come flooding in afterwards. Look at Gabourey Sidebe, who’s been steadily working since.
Agreed. She knew what the game was and didn’t play it because she wasn’t being paid. Now she’s trying to re-write what happened, which isn’t going to do anything to make her more endearing to Hollywood.
I believe when people are trying to cast for films they probably have a list of a few people and depending on the film and where they think they can make the money they try to get someone who is marketable in those areas. I have a friend who is a producer and the others kept pushing for someone they thought unsuitable but he was very popular or well known in the far east. I don’t think it’s ever as easy as oh they are a fantastic actor it might be for some but not for all. I can see not playing the crazy game but it depends on where you are on the ladder. You have to play a game for most fields, finance, advertising, self employed it just depends on how much you are willing to play it.
AG – you may be right. In a similar vein, I recently watched an interview with someone who made one of those pilots that people get to vote on for a full series with Amazon Prime. She was saying how fantastic it was to be unimpeded by anything other than what the viewer likes. When she was working in commercial TV, she’d had to change plot lines, characters, actors, everything, after ADVERTISERS had seen the pilot.
You have toilet roll/skin cream/fast food retailers dictating the content and casting of drama. And if that’s the case, presumably product placing in movies follows the same lines. They want people who will a) suit their customer base and b) get active in promoting to it.
I’ve heard other producers and such say similar things, how everyone wants to have input and it often makes things messy. I can imagine it dilutes the original concept, and that must be frustrating. When they get to work with a network or whatever that doesn’t interfere, it’s like a weight off their shoulders.
I love how 30 Rock dealt with that stuff. They just made it part of the joke.
AG – UK: that’s it in a nutshell.
Also, award season is a chance to network with past, present and future employers because the system is really a set of independent contractors.
Further, awards season is the cheapest way for the nominated people, no matter their branch, to improve their marketability via their improved visibility thus making them a better financial investment than some unknown or someone who hasn’t proven their BO/award credentials.
She refused to campaign thus cutting off her nose to spite her face, and apparently seems to have continued in the same vein post-Oscars.
Ask yourself where Gabourey Sidibe would be if she’d taken Monique’s attitude.
@LAK: I said something similar above. Mo’nique missed out on shmoozing potential employers and professional connections by declining to campaign. She won her award, but showed that she was unwilling to do anything extra to promote her movie. And lo and behold, parts that could have gone to Mo’nique went to Oprah, who you can guarantee will shill her heart out.
Yep. I mean, I kind of snicker at Bendy and Tom Hiddleston (especially) for their OTT promotion. But I see them as doing their jobs. And I think that if you don’t want to do basic promotional duties for your movie, then you need to just not be in the film industry. Especially as an actor. Go do a play if you don’t want to be on tv and promote stuff. Besides Terrance Malick, EVERYONE promotes their films. And they should.
I find it very interesting that she was offered the part of the wife in The Butler. The entire time I endured watching Oprah’s horrible performance in that role, I was casting other actresses, including Mo’nique in the part.
I get what she’s saying – she’s an artist, not a sales person. Unfortunately, in H’wood you have to be both.
Actually in Life you need to be both – whatever is that you are doing AND a salesperson.
It’s not just Hollywood.
Be it personal life or professional life, it’s a huge advantage to have salesperson skills.
+1
Being likable is very helpful no matter what your field is. You can call it “playing the game” or you can call it being part of a society. It’s what you have to do to not get pushed out to sea on an ice floe by the rest of the village.
She wanted to be paid to campaign and promote.She also refused to comeback the next year to Oscar show to give the next Oscar
So it wasn’t that she was necessarily opposed to campaigning for ethical reasons, or because she wasn’t willing to schmooze, but rather because she didn’t feel like her paycheck from the movie was enough to merit the promotional aspects of the job. Fascinating.
Seems to me her problem is Oprah.
That was my thought, as well. When your competition for roles has money, fame, name recognition and owns half the planet, you’d better learn to play the game a little.
seriously!
and lee daniels isnt doing her any favors either but considering her, not hiring her, and then telling her “those people” are blackballing you
My thoughts exactly, at least a very large part of her problem. In both The Butler and Selma, I spent the entire movie wishing somebody, anybody, other than Oprah was in the film.
Seems to me her problem is herself. And maybe a little of her husband, too.
Well, remember, she was also reportedly requesting appearance fees to do the standard Oscar stuff like Q&A’s. That didn’t help. But she still won, so… why blackball her?
Wasn’t Kevin Hart called a whore for doing the same thing?? Whatever. She was probably not paid a whole lot for the role and I could see her freely talking about work your proud of but any excessive presentation I think I would want a check for.
The Oscars are not a space entity, an entire community stands behind them made of voters and industry people, the people that create and keep the ball rolling. If the movie community didn’t want the Oscars or if it wanted a different face for the Oscars they would get it done. This allegedly shitty community accepted her ‘rebellion’ and still gave her an Oscar.
Maybe when she was proven wrong about them she should have had a change in attitude.
I don’t have much sympathy for her. In almost any job, there is a degree of political game playing that you have to play in order to advance. My husband has gone through this at his job-he’s a very blunt and honest person, but that doesn’t serve him well at times. He has learned over the years that sometimes you just have to bite the bullet and take someone out for a round of golf or go to dinner or whatever no matter how much you dislike that particular person to get the deal to go through.
Except I don’t think more choices/money/respect comes with winning a Oscar. That’s a myth for most of them. Some years you just have the right role at the right time-it doesn’t mean the additional fame and success will follow. It happens to men and women. It’s called the Oscar curse for a reason. Maybe some people are singling her out because of her attitude-but it doesn’t have anything to do with her Oscar campaign. That would have happened anyway.
Look at the post-oscar careers of Adrien Brody, Halle Berry, Jean Dujardin, Jamie Fox, Roberto Benigni, Mira Sorvino etc etc.
Exactly.
People vastly over estimate the power of the Oscars for career longevity, or even relevance!!
Yeah, I was thinking the same thing re: Oscar curse.
OT, sorry. Mia – remember we were talking about the boy from my school applying for uni? He got a reduced (only slightly, but enough to make it achievable) offer from the institution after his interview! We’re all over the moon! I just wish we had the resources to put the effort in for everyone with challenges.
Oh good for him. Bravo for what you guys are doing, sixer.
Sixer – I just got goosebumps!!! I am SO HAPPY for him!
And so glad to e-know someone like you… your pride shows and you have really made a difference in this boy’s life. Congrats to him, you and your team!
I agree – it’s no guarantee for a huge career after a win. I think it can help, but you still have to work hard and choose wisely.
Oscar curse? But then Hollywood likes people who suck up to them. Acting “difficult” doesn’t seem to work there. If she had praised people like Pascal, she would have gotten everywhere. Learn from the “bad actors and bad movie makers” who make it in Hollywood and pat their own backs with glee, get awards after awards, undeserved of course.
hollywood is a mess uped place but then again if you want to work there…
the list of people in movies would be short if only stable and well behaved people would get jobs, so it comes down to: is the person worth it? she had one big movie and that was it. someone like Christian Bale will get away with yelling at workers because he brings in money and awards for quite some time now.
the biggest problem is we dont know what exactly happened, we know studios want people to sell their souls campaigning but she herself and others also point to her generally being difficult and demanding. so its hard to say what exactly it was.
but the lesson still stands, if you bring in money or awards or even better both you can do whatever you want. if one thing stops, you can be the nicest person in the world and you’ll be thrown out.
Bale is NOT a good example ( he has a well better reputation on set or promotion than many think ).Edward Norton is the most similar example.He was blackballed because of his attitude during the promotion,the filming and the filming.Marvel publicly says they never again worked with him.He only again works because he changed his attitude
That was one incident with Bale. So you’re saying that he was once recorded a decade ago yelling at someone while on a tense set, he should be blackballed? That’s not at all the same comparison. Look at instead someonelike David O Russell, who’s terrible attitude kills his career for a long time, and it was only after he had a huge attitude overhaul that he started working again.
Honestly, black female oscar winners haven’t had a great track record overall. Whoopey did great because she was a comedian. But other than that… what happened to Jennifer Hudson? What movies has Lupita been in? Octavia Spencer has actually been a couple of things, but she’s a character actress anyway. Honestly, the oscar doesn’t mean much overall, especially in the supporting categories. I looked at the list of supporting actress winners on wikipedia the other day and I couldn’t recognize most of those names, so, you know. Being a supporting actress winner doesn’t have a great track record, and throw race into the cards and you’re really facing some bad odds. Her attitude doesn’t help, either. That being said, her win was uncountable deserved and I loved her on the Parkers.
Lupita is in Star Wars. She’ll be fine.
Why throw race into it? BSA is no guarantee of future success period. This is about her attitude not her race.
The Best Supporting Actress Oscar does nothing for any ones career. The same goes for Best Actress. Why do we think Cooper keeps getting roles? The acting nods/awards that help a career are for the males.
Two of those roles went to Oprah, who probably produced the movies. I’d look more to Oprah as to why she didn’t get two of those roles and was pushed out. The all powerful Oprah wanted them. Either way, Lee Daniels and Oprah are tight.
During her acceptance speech she felt it would be a good idea to rub the noses of her peers and potential employers in $#!T.
I can certainly see why some people might not be too enthused about working with her.
I think this is why so many people are moving to TV. Better parts, slightly less crap to deal with, you get to stay in one place.
It’s probably also why you have people working within a particular group most of the time. The Adam Sandler crowd, the Judd Apatow crowd. People that are home growing their own brand.
Difficult actors will always have trouble finding work, it is not just her. The only way some actors can get away with it is if they are regularly a huge part of the reason a movie grosses a zillion dollars. Character actors like Mo’nique, though? Nope. Too much trouble and not worth the effort.
It sounds like Monique is difficult to work with. Lee Daniels could have put her in Empire or The Butler if he wanted to. He didn’t put her in his projects for a reason.
+1,000
Look Edward Norton .He had the same attitude,the stopped to call him.Finally he changed his attitude
My cousin went to high school with Ed Norton, excuse me, EDWARD. He was a jerk even then. But glad he’s smartened up.
Ed’s jerkishness is so sad to me because I really think he’s a genuinely talented actor with good range and I loved his performance in Birdman almost as much as I loved Keaton’s. But yes. Actors need to be liked by other Hollywood people to find work. That’s my theory on why Channing Tatum (who is funny enough but not super talented or particularly attractive imo) gets so much work. People just like working with him that much.
I agree FingerBinger. I was surprised for all of two seconds when I saw Gabouray in “Empire”…then I’m like OHHH…..Lee Daniels durrrr. If he wanted to, he could’ve hired her for a role…made one up for her. He didn’t.
I worked an Oscar campaign during that award season and she *was* rude, unprofessional, and derogatory to *everyone*. Assistants (like me) would scramble to not be assigned her table/seating at events because she was *horrendous*. If she got blackballed, which I can fully believe, it’s not because she “didn’t play the game”, it’s because she was an awful person who made no connections during that time. You may sniff at Cumberbatch’s try during this season, but he is networking, and very effectively. That’s what a lot of the award season is about: networking, and making connections that will help you get work going forward. A lot of the perceived “Oscar boost” isn’t even really about the win, it’s about how all that time in all those rooms of producers, directors, etc, help you build a reputation as someone people want to work with.
For all that Joaquin Phoenix is a weirdo, he’s also very polite, timely, and conducts himself well during events. He’s not the easiest to get along with because he’s very particular about his work, which can conflict with directors who just want actors to be blank slates and do as they’re told with no input, but everyone knows if you hire Phoenix, he will be prompt to set, with his lines memorized, and he won’t terrorize the PAs and crew. Mo’nique was a holy terror, and she would repeatedly and loudly criticize everyone and everything within earshot any time she went anywhere. At one dinner she harangued a press aide until she was given extra gift bags because the one that was given out wasn’t “nice” enough (iirc, it had about $5,000 worth of products in it). It wasn’t the “no campaigning” thing, it was that she expected to be paid for personal appearances, that she was rude and awful when she did go to things, and she acted like she was the only person to ever overcome adversity and achieve something in entertainment. That offended people the most, I think. I remember a producer at that party where she was demanding the gift bags saying that he had come from a poor background in Pittsburgh but you didn’t see him treating other people like garbage.
She went on a two-month bender proving that she is intolerable and a disruption, which is the one thing people won’t put up with. You can have the messiest personal life in the world, but if you show up to set and get your job done, no one will complain and people will still work with you. I have never in over a decade of working in entertainment seen anything like it. I’ve heard some horror stories in the same vein about Lindsay Lohan, though, and she doesn’t get much work, either, for the same reasons. No matter how talented they are, it’s not worth the drama.
I’m from Baltimore, like Mo’nique, and yes we do not suffer fools gladly, but you have to learn how to play the game and do it graciously. Obviously, Mo’nique fell into that Hollywood trap of believing her own press during that Oscar campaign, like Bendy is currently doing, but instead of snapping out her self-induced narcissistic phase when she realized it was losing her parts, she decided now to play the victim and write about it. I can’t imagine that article will win her any roles either.
Whatever may be the impression Bendy is making publicly, he’s coming off really well within the industry. People already thought he’s talented, now they see a hard worker who can smile through even the dumbest of press events. That’s a big part of being in movies now. I see Tom Hiddleston the same way. As goofy as he can come off to the peanut gallery, the people who do the hiring are consistently impressed by the commitment and work ethic. I think that’s what Mo’nique didn’t see or understand, that it’s not necessarily about this moment, right now, but making an impression for the next moment, down the line. I don’t think she was considering the repercussions of being so nasty behind the scenes.
Benny is doing what is expected of him, not because he likes it, How can anyone honestly believe that anyone likes promotional work?
He fidgets during the interviews, it is obvious he’d rather be elsewhere, but he is being a polite english gent and does his job. And he’ll benefit from it down the line.
The same with Redmayne, the silly stories he has to come up with to entertain people? Gah! But it is all a part of the job,
This stuff is a job. We may see gowns, tuxes, and booze, but those are industry events where they’re either working to sell their movie/performance or working to network and make professional connections. Could you imagine being in the ‘real world’ and demanding extra money to go to a business dinner? You can’t do stuff like that and wonder why the next person behind you got the job. We may make fun of Huddleston, Cumberbatch, et al, but if I wver making a movie with them I’d feel secure in the knowledge that they were going to get out there and sell their butts off with a smile on their face. For Mo’nique to blame her predicament on any one other than herself shows EXactly why she’s not working much today.
Thanks for the insight. It explains a lot. And I think Lee Daniel’s comments is his cop out to the fact that he doesn’t want to work with her either.
Algernon: What you’re saying is EXACTLY what people in both the service industry and production industry here in ATL say all the time. She is a loud, rude, obnoxious woman who is always demanding MORE. She really is an unpleasant human being, and people genuinely can’t stand having to work with or around her.
During the Oscar campain Monique was doing stand up to support her family.She wanted to be paid because she was being forced to cancel her shows therefore losing her income.She didn’t get that promoting an Oscar film has to be your full time job.I am sure she wasn’t polite when she told them her situation.I have always wondered how these actors support themselves when they are spending months campaigning.I know the studio pays for flights and hotel but they don’t pay your mortgage or kid’s tuition.
This is a straw man argument. The actors ARE ALREADY AWARE that they do not get paid for these things. It was absolutely ridiculous for her to expect to get paid for these types of things when no one else does.
I was just wondering how much is actually communicated (you know, with words) when an actor signs on for a role, and how much is assumed and/or inferd about what is expected during the award season. I just assumed there were probably contracts for every aspect of an Oscsar calibre movie, you know?
Mo’nique could very easily have worked with the production company for her talk show to areange her schedule – everyone would have financially benefitted from her higher profile, and there’s no rule that says talk shows need to be filmed linearly. They could have banked multiple episodes at a time, they could have shown some re-runs, they had options. Mo’nique made her choice to go out of her way to be unprofessional during her Oscar season, and now she’s wondering why she didnt end up with any career bump post-Oscar
She didn’t play the game, it’s that simple. She was diffucult about attending press events and promoting herself and her movie during her Oscar season. When you’re an established big star then sure, you can get away with that but as a relative newcomer to the big time? Hell no. You need to network like crazy and charm the pants off the industry people. Otherwise, nobody will bother with you, winner or not and deserved or not. How many one time Oscar winners have we seen fade completely away because they didn’t capitalize correctly? That’s what happens. I’m sorry about what happened to her, but I believe she brought it on herself to a large extent.
I remember reading endless stories about her just being a pain in the ass. Then the new reports about her being harassed at airports. Funny that she’s out of the spot light how she has nothing to complain about until now.
As for the Oscars, Jennifer aniston take note. Monique let her work speak for itself.
Jennifer Aniston is usually called upon to do the heavy lifting , as far as promotional work, for any project she’s involved in and is considered to be a team player.
She also has a reputation for being a consummate professional who is pleasant to work with.
Perhaps it’s Mo’nique who needs to take notes.
Aniston is also a mediocre actress . I wonder was she really a team player seeing she never mentioned her co stars in Cake. She pulled out her ADHD, her dead boyfriend, the Bermuda triangle, her usual topless pics and still didn’t get a nomination.
#FAIL
So who needs to take notes.
Are you kidding me?! When is it ever NOT about politics? In any field but especially in Hollywood? Who you know, who your friends are, who’s backing you — these all matter in real life.
If you’re no good at making friends, well, that’s on you. (See Katherine Heigl.) If you’re a pill to work with, but still manage to figure out how to make important relationships work, you’ll continue to work.
Good on her for sticking to her principles and being who she is. But you can’t have it both ways. You can’t be uncompromising and expect everyone to like you and like working with you and like having to sit next to you at the Golden Globes.
It’s like people who call on the right to free speech all the time AND expect everyone around them to appreciate all the nasty stuff they say. You do have the right to say what you think, but you can NOT expect everyone else to like it and like you for it. And I do NOT have to hire you if I think you’re attitude is going to cause me more headaches than you’re worth.
If you haven’t figured this stuff out after living on the planet for 30 years, you’re just going to live a very lonely and resentment-filled life.
THIS!!!!!
Because she’s an “uppity black woman.”
Fassbender and other folksdon’t campaign either, or/and refuse to attend even when they will win. They aren’t blackballed.
Even this white woman writing this knows this.
BLACKballed.
Fassy may not do a lot of visible campaigning but he definitely knows how to win the favor of his colleagues. Steve McQueen wants to cast him in everything, Brad Pitt wouldn’t shut up about him during the press junket for inglorious basterds etc. and he has been in extremely profitable x men movies, making him somewhat ‘established’. When you’re established, these campaigns don’t matter in terms of your future prospects, you’ll get roles regardless. It sounds like this woman did not endear herself to the people around her post filming and when you have no legs in the industry, ‘letting a performance speak for itself’ does nothing for anybody in the long run. It is a shame that a talented WOC hasn’t been given many opportunities but you need to come across as affable and charming and easy to work with when it counts, and she does not seem to have done this.
While I absolutely agree that rich white men runt he world let’s be honest about something: Mo’nique and Fassbender do NOT look the same. Of course Fassbender is going to still get roles after he refuses to campaign…look at him! If you are a large African-American woman who looks like Mo’nique (and I’m not saying that there is anything wrong with the way she looks) in a white male dominated business you know that you have to work harder. Period.
Not so much about Mo’nique but… I don’t think it’s true that winning an Oscar boosts your career. For most people, it doesn’t. If there weren’t many roles for you before you won, there aren’t going to suddenly be more roles for you after you’ve won. Look at Forest Whitaker. He won an Oscar but nothing much happened. There just aren’t that many leading roles for black men. Or Adrien Brody. He always said he had trouble being cast because he was seen as “too ethnic.” Winning an Oscar didn’t change that situation. Or Dianne Wiest. She won TWO Oscars and just said she has trouble paying her rent. She’s still a middle aged woman in an industry that favours younger, slimmer women. Oscars tend to be for “roles of a lifetime” that don’t come along very often. The only people who seem to thrive after winning an Oscar are people who are already movie stars like Sandra Bullock, who can just keep doing what they did before they won. Winning an Oscar is arguably bad for your career in another way – people feel like you’ve “peaked”, your story is over and there’s nowhere left to go. You’re not new, you’re not someone with potential anymore, you’ve been figured out. I always remember Cate Blanchett saying not winning (when she was up against Gwyneth Paltrow) was probably good for her career, and I think that’s true.
This. Thank you for putting into words what I was thinking.
Very well said!
Sorry, but Mo’Nique has always been notoriously difficult. She’s caused public snafus before, not to mention that she’s very demanding, loudmouthed, and expects a lot of special treatment, according to people who’ve worked with her and Atlanta locals who’ve had to interact with her. She’s kind of a scary woman, so I can definitely see a lot of people in the industry not wanting to work with her. And, really sorry to say it, but she’s always accusing non-black people of being racist if they don’t do what she wants and how she wants it. And also, how many roles are there in H’wood available for obese women?