INTERVIEW: Bernie Mac

We recently had the opportunity to ask Bernie Mac a few questions about his upcoming film GUESS WHO. Bernie co-stars with Ashton Kutcher in this comedy which is a contemporary “re-make” of the classic GUESS WHO’S COMING TO DINNER. This interview was conducted by Gilbert Seah. 

Cinema Eye: For you, where does the comedy in Guess Who come from?
Bernie Mac: When I was a young boy aspiring to be a comedian, I actually tried to make people laugh at inopportune times; that showed my strength.  It showed me that I could do it; I could make you laugh when there was no room for laughter.  That’s when I knew I would became a comedian and that’s where the comedy comes from in this movie.

Cinema Eye: What is your character Percy’s reaction to meeting Ashton Kutcher’s character Simon for the first time?
Bernie Mac: In this film, it’s not so much that my daughter is bringing a white guy to the house; it’s that she didn’t tell us.  I mean, you know, it’s 2005, man.  I think Percy is caught off-guard.

Cinema Eye: How was working with Ashton Kutcher?
Bernie Mac:Working with Ashton was a blast.  We played football, salsa danced, drove go carts, and basically ran around.

Cinema Eye: How was your working relationship with Zoe Saldana, who plays your daughter in the film?
Bernie Mac: Zoe is unbelievable.  Zoe has so much range.  She has so much natural ability.  She has so much inner self and what I mean by inner self that she gives on-camera and it comes out.

Cinema Eye: What does Guess Who represent to you?
Bernie Mac:I think it takes you somewhere that you had no expectation of this movie going.  Everyone talks about heart and warmth; it’s beyond that.  I think it’s about truth.  I think it’s about decision, a tough decision.  I think it’s about being a hypocrite or not being a hypocrite.  I think it’s about teaching your family, your kids, the right way, which comes from the heart.

GUESS WHO hits theatres everywhere March 25th, 2005