Alicia Silverstone, Kevin Bacon, Djimon Hounsou, Alfre Woodard, Mena Suvari, and Andie MacDowell join Queen Latifah for this female-powered comedy, directed by Bille Woodruff ("Honey").
INTERVIEW WITH QUEEN LATIFAH:
From “Barbershop” to “Beauty Shop:” “We kind of just wanted to create something new. Gina was introduced in 'Barbershop II,' but she wasn't really established. We didn't really know who she was. So now it's like who is she? Who are we creating here and what's the story, what story are we going to tell?
We wanted to have some fun with the idea of a person who builds a clientele in this exclusive, mostly white shop who decides to open this shop that's in the hood now. And her clients follow her because, you know what, they need their hair done and you tend to follow your stylist. So what happens when you through all these people in one shop and what happens when you inherit someone else's staff? There's a tension that's created and how you work through all of that stuff and raise a daughter at the same time and put food on the table and pay the bills. That kind of stuff is human relationships, relatable, anyone can understand that. Anyone can connect to it. We've all maybe seen situations like that or maybe we'd like to see a situation like that.
I think that parents can definitely relate to a relationship between the mom and the daughter. Anyone who's ever had to deal with a boss who's a jerk can relate to that, and how you really just want to tell their a** off one good time and walk out the door. So I'm doing it for everyone who really wants to do it. I've got to do that one time in my life, and I know how it felt. I quit Burger King because the manager disrespected me. So after I tore him a new one, I walked up out of there. (Laughing) Okay, actually he said I was fired, but I was going to quit anyway.”
Shooting in Atlanta vs. Filming in Chicago: “Because it's warmer than in Chicago and it was the wintertime. I really didn't want to shoot in the winter in Chicago, honestly. Come on. I was like, 'We've got to move this to some place warm.' The boys wanted Miami and I'm like, 'Look guys, we can't shoot in Miami. There is no way we can shoot in Miami right now. We might have too much fun and not get a movie done in Miami. Lets not go quite so far south.' Atlanta, you know what? We know Atlanta. Bille [Woodruff] knows Atlanta. He lived there for three years, and we felt like he could kind of pick up the vibe of Atlanta. Keshia is from Atlanta.
We spent a lot of time in Atlanta. At least a couple of times a year we're down there for like the past 15 or so years. Atlanta is a place that has a lot of rich musical culture. It's got its own kind of flavor, its own thing going on. We felt like this was a place where if we did do 'Beauty Shop' and Beauty Shop' two and three, this is a place that it could happen because there's plenty to draw from locally. So we thought it would be kind of cool.”
Taking on Kevin Bacon – Was It Planned Out in Advance?: “No. We got Kevin Bacon and Queen Latifah. We act, this is what we do. It's like, 'Okay, a couple of rehearsals and let’s shoot it.' He's a great villain. I was like so excited to have Kevin onboard. When we got the call that Kevin was doing it, it was like, 'Yes! Kevin is doing it. This is great.' Andie [MacDowell] and Alfre [Woodard] and Mena [Suvari] and Alicia [Silverstone] and Sherri [Shepherd]. It's like everyone that we wanted is in the movie and they were all able to do it and wanted to be involved in it. So we got our dream cast, we definitely got our dream cast.”
Having the Midas Touch: “I'm trying to get it to turn to diamonds. Damn it. I've got to get my alchemy on. [What’s the] secret? The man upstairs. God has just blessed us beautifully and put good people in my life. When you work with your friends since high school and you guys have loyalty and you believe in each other and you tell each other the truth, I mean, I don't know. We just always have dreams and we saw them as goals and not just dreams. We just said, 'Okay. How do we get to it? Let's go for it.' I've never really been afraid to do that.
I look at people as people. No one is better than me. No one is worse than me. I'm not afraid to talk to anyone because you're just another person to me.”
The Best Beauty Advice: “To let my skin rest. Less is more. Beauty comes from the inside. That's the best advice that I was given because now I'm not trying to make it all happen out here. It does start in here.
Most women don't even need a lot of makeup. They just put all this crap on their faces and clog up your pores, get pimples and stuff. I mean, when I'm not working I don't wear makeup. Maybe some lip gloss and maybe a little mascara, but that's it. My skin needs a break.”
