You probably know Leslie Uggams for playing Blind Al in Marvel's Deadpool franchise, Leah Walker in the TV series Empire, and Kizzy Reynolds in Roots. But who does Leslie Uggams play in American Fiction?
Leslie Uggams Stars in Cord Jefferson's Hilarious Directorial Debut
American Fiction isn't just any ordinary story. Cord Jefferson's directorial debut adapts Percival Everett's novel Erasure, in which we follow Monk (Jeffrey Wright), a marginalized writer who was told that his writing 'isn't Black enough.'
Starring alongside Wright in the cast is legendary Tony winner Leslie Uggams, who plays the role of Agnes Ellison in American Fiction. According to Vanity Fair, Agnes is the main character's mother: "[Monk] cares for his ailing mother."
The filmmaker Cord Jefferson shared during the 2023 TIFF what it was like working with Uggams on set despite the horrible weather during filming:
"That night when we were shooting a scene where she wanders off the beach, it was late, and it was cold, windy, and a little rainy and wet, and she was obviously up late. She was walking around looking for a bathroom on the beach. [...]"
And when Jefferson had asked if the actress would still be able to hold on for another ten minutes or so, all Leslie said was, as Jefferson imitated her voice, "Yeah, we're making a movie."
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What is American Fiction Film About?
American Fiction first premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 8th, in the film won the People's Choice Award. Officially, the satiric movie will be released this coming December 15th.
While it remains to be seen how Leslie Uggams will play off in American Fiction, Monk would likely have to share his instant success with his family.
Since the film is described as 'confronting our culture's obsession with reducing people to outrageous stereotypes,' comedy is not the only thing playing a part here, but even the perspective that gets you thinking, would it matter if the book sells anyway?
The official synopsis for American Fiction reads:
Jeffrey Wright stars as Monk, a frustrated novelist who's fed up with the establishment profiting from 'Black' entertainment that relies on tired and offensive tropes. To prove his point, Monk uses a pen name to write an outlandish 'Black' book of his own, a book that propels him to the heart of hypocrisy and the madness he claims to disdain.
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