Around this time last month, filmmaker and producer Nina Lee had social media threads talking about the reality of getting Black projects greenlit by studios, after sharing that executives said the future of her already completed rom-com “That’s Her” depended on the success of “You, Me and Tuscany.”
Now, a month later, Lee has social media buzzing again, except this time with excitement. This week, the award-winning producer teased a bit of good news about her rom-com on X.
“This random post from Pop Crave really changed the game for me and my film,” she wrote reflecting on her viral post. “Excited to share new developments in the next few months.”
At the time, Lee, like many Black users, was urging people to go see the Will Packer-produced romantic comedy starring Halle Bailey and Regé Jean-Page. However, beyond wanting to support Black creatives, Lee’s callout was motivated by a conversation she reportedly had with a studio and an executive about her own romance projects.
In addition to the hundreds of users who called out the unfair pressure Black projects face, Packer and Bailey even chimed in, noting how unfair that reality is.
“[Hollywood has a] very paltry record when it comes to films that highlight diverse leads,” Packer told the Hollywood Reporter, also remembering a time when Black romcoms were being heavily greenlit. “I remember the golden era of rom-coms, and even Black rom-coms. Audiences were showing up in theaters and enjoying those movies. So people do have to understand that Hollywood is a reactive industry, and there is an opportunity to say that this type of film — with these types of leads, with the audience that enjoys these types of films — are profitable and worth making, and Hollywood will make more of them.”
“I feel like it almost isn’t fair for us to have to [hear] you know, ‘oh, well, we’re gonna watch how this one does. And then we’ll green light you.’ Like, it shouldn’t be like that at all, but I do think that we are known for breaking barriers and not letting anything stop us as a community,” Bailey said as previously reported by theGrio. “Nothing can stop us, nothing can stop that girl, Nina. Like, her movie is gonna do great, and it’s gonna get greenlit because people want to see our stories on screen.”
In a conversation with theGrio, Lee admits that her post’s virality sparks a range of emotions from nerves to excitement.
“I felt a few ways, at first I was nervous for what their reaction would be. But then I was excited because it seemed to spark a genuine conversation and connection to them,” she shared. “It was nice. I hope [this instance tells] creatives to ‘share your work, talk about your work.’ And to executives, I hope they see how much traction this has gotten because there is a genuine interest in Black films.”
And as “The Little Mermaid” star noted, there is in fact a desire to see Black stories on screen. During its opening weekend, “You, Me & Tuscany” reportedly grossed $8.3 million, per Deadline. And after two weeks in theaters, it grossed $14.4 million, according to Variety.
And soon, hopefully, outlets will be reporting on the success of Lee’s film. Though details about “That’s Her” starring Coco Jones, Kountry Wayne, Loretta Devine, Tabitha Brown, remain fairly quiet, Lee did assure her followers that Jones and Wayne’s roles as love interests “works” and that, like all previous directorial projects, it puts darkskin Black women front and center.
“That’s Her is a romcom about a man who finds himself smitten with two women — a storyline you’ve certainly seen before,” Lee told theGrio. “But we definitely have a new spin on it. The film dives into how our parents’ own views on love influence how we show up in dating. All the while, the film is also quite hilarious.”
