In this movie here, the director John Schultz, he demanded that we stick to the dialogue so that it could carry the story because it wasn’t a slapstick movie. It was about our relationships. You know what I mean? It was about me and Ralph’s relationship, Ralph and Alice’s relationship, me and Trixie’s relationship. So in those type of movies, you can’t ad-lib a lot because you’ve got to stick to a story.
The story was about Ralph having this big dream of being an entrepreneur, so there were certain scenes that we were able to ad-lib in and certain scenes [you] can’t say nothing that you would like to say. He would print four of what was on the paper and then say, ‘Okay, you can do one of yours,’ but I knew it was never going to make it. It’s on the gag reel. If you want to see what I really wanted to say, look on the bonus footage.
They didn’t let me ad-lib. [I’m] not on the defensive though. It kind of hurt me when I wasn’t able to do that because that’s what I’m used to doing, but what it did for me was it kept me in a frame and it gave me another dimension of comedy. I learned something from it. I learned that you don’t have to be all over the place, that you can be subtle and you can say what you say. The words that you put together can be just as hilarious as falling all over the place or doing something physical.”
Mike Epps on His Relationship with Cedric the Entertainer: “I used to see Cedric, we come from the same comedy group, from Def Comedy Jam and Comic View and stuff like that. I used to see him just out and about but we’re both from the Midwest. He’s from Missouri and I’m from Indiana, so we both kind of like have the same kind of outlook on characters and everyday living a little bit. He’s just cool, man. Cedric, man, it’s like if I’m working with you, like I’m sitting here now talking to you, I want to get along with you. That’s how I am. I feel like if I get along with you, the work will be splendid.”
Mike Epps on “The Honeymooners” TV Series and the Original Ed Norton: “I’m not old enough to know ‘The Honeymooners.’ I can’t say that. I was born in 1971, so it was 25 years old by the time I was born. But I can vaguely remember my grandmother playing it in the house. You know, how you’re running in the house, you see black and white television shows—I didn’t know if it was ‘I Love Lucy’ or ‘Andy Griffith;’ I knew it was one of those black and white sitcoms, you know what I mean? So when they told me that I was looked at for the role, I went and bought some lost episodes, 100 episodes. I just started skimming through it and watching it.
In no kind of way was I trying to imitate him. I didn’t want to do an impression of Ed. I wanted to do my version of it. But at the same time give him some of Norton’s little antics, to pay homage to him. I think it would have been total disrespect for me to do an imitation of him. So I just made sure I [said things like] ‘Hey Ralphie Boy!,’ make smart little comments like him, tried to have a little of that timing, you know?”
Mike Epps on Working with Regina King: “Regina was so cool. I worked with Regina previously in another movie, ‘Malibu’s Most Wanted.’ She was in that movie and I did a cameo in it. Regina is real funny. She’s from Washington DC. I know people from Washington DC, and she’s got that kind of humor. That kind of east coast, cute little…she’s not going to do too much, she’s going to play her part.
The girls were hilarious. The girls put the spice on it. They were funny and confident, and I’m glad they got along. That always helps a movie, when the people are really getting along. If they don’t get along, man, you’ll see that right through the film. There’ll be something about it. She was funny.”
PAGE 2: Mike Epps on Starring in the Richard Pryor Project
