Antoine Fuqua; Will Smith.Photo: Jon Kopaloff/Getty; ANGELA WEISS/AFP via Getty
Antoine Fuquais opening up more about the decision to releaseEmancipationas planned.
“They were very sensitive to myself, to Will, to all the people who worked on the movie,” explained Fuqua, 56.
According to theTraining Dayfilmmaker, “There was never a conversation with me and Apple or my producers, Todd Black and Jon Mone or Heather Washington,about the movienotcoming out.”
“It was more about, ‘We’re assessing everything. We’re seeing what people are saying.’ They were very careful about it,” Fuqua continued. “Then we showed the film to some people and their reactions were really positive, and we discussed it along the way.”
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Fuqua directed the upcoming drama about a man who escapes slavery, which was filmed prior to the controversial moment when Smith, 54, hitChris Rockin the faceonstage at the Academy Awardson March 27.
Fuqua said the moment that unfolded live “didn’t feel real to me at all” because he hadn’t “met a nicer human being” before and noted that Smith was “kind to everyone on the set” ofEmancipation.
“I saw a different person than that one moment in time, and so my reaction was that particular moment isvery foreign to me when it comes to Will Smith,” he explained. “I have nothing but amazing things to say about Will Smith, really genuinely. You can ask anybody that worked on the movie, they’ll tell you the same. Nicest person I’ve ever met in my life.”
“Chris Rock — I know Chris — Chris is a good guy too,” Fuqua added. “I’ve spent time with Chris, and I think it’s an unfortunate event and I hope we can move forward and get past it.”
For Fuqua, his “conversation was always, ‘Isn’t 400 years of slavery, of brutality, more important than one bad moment?’ " when it came tothe film being releasedamid the fallout surrounding Smith’s controversy with Rock, 57.
“We were in Hollywood, and there’s been some really ugly things that have taken place, and we’ve seen a lot of people get awards that have done some really nasty things,” Fuqua toldVanity Fair.
Smith hashosted several private screeningsofEmancipationin recent weeks with various celebrities in attendances, includingRihanna,Tyler Perry,Jamie Foxx,Dave Chappelle,LeBron Jamesand more.
source: people.com
