On tour promoting her sexy new suspense thriller Perfect Stranger -- no, not an adaptation of that 80's sitcom with Balki Bartokomous - Oscar-winner Halle Berry had a quick chat with 34ST.
STREET: What have you not yet accomplished in your film career? Is there anyone you need to work with? Are there any types of movies you hope to make?
Halle Berry: I really want to do a romantic comedy. I haven't really done that yet in my career. I'd like to work with George Clooney one day, before I die. I've wanted to work with Denzel Washington for a while, but it'll probably never happen. I'd really like to work with Steven Spielberg. And Woody Allen, but I'd probably never be right for a Woody Allen movie.
STREET: They're all Jewish people from New York.
HB: Yeah, I'm not Jewish, but those are all people I like and respect.
STREET: Do you want to write that romantic comedy?
HB: I'm producing one right now for myself called Nappily Ever After.
STREET: What's that about?
HB: It's a chick flick, and I say that in the best possible way. But it's also a movie that men can get too, because men deal with women. They know women. They have a mother, or they have a sister, so men can relate to it too. And it's about how much time we as women invest in our hair. And if our hair's not right, we're not right. And it becomes the way we identify ourselves, by our hair. In this movie, my character starts off very invested in her hair. As a kid, her mother wouldn't let her jump in the water because she would get the 'fro, so she had to miss out on a lot of fun as a kid, so she grew up into this adult who just cared about her hair. And through the course of the movie, something happens and her hair gets messed up. She loses her hair and chooses to shave her head off completely bald, and now she's got to deal with who she really is without the mask of her hair. She has a Jewish friend who has a 'fro as well when her hair's not straightened. Through my character, the other women in the movie sort of find their power, and it's really not through their hair at all. This movie is a funny look at this craziness that surrounds women and their hair and our identity. It will be out some time this year. The reason why it's called Nappily Ever After is that she's about to get married when the movie starts, and because she goes bald, she has to rethink her whole relationship and she has to rethink many things.
STREET: I'll be bald in less than five years, so I'll look to this film for inspiration.
HB: Men have to go through real soul-searching when that happens. It's true.
STREET: I'm willing to accept my fate.
HB: How do you know you're going to be bald?
STREET: I know. I'm on my way already, don't worry about me. Do you mind talking about race? Is it the kind of thing that you've come to embrace? Do you want to be seen only as an actress without skin color being considered in the equation?
HB: I would love to be seen as just an actress, but we're not quite there yet. I hope I live to see the day when we are there. But for now, I think it's my responsibility to talk about it and heighten awareness about issues. But I would love for there to be a day when race is not an issue.
STREET: So, do you think the whole Michael Richards thing exacerbated racial tensions in LA?
HB: I think that truly offended a lot of people and I think it's not okay to spout racial slurs. That's not okay, it should not be okay. I think he offended a lot of people. And I think he needed to apologize.
STREET: Participating in beauty pageants like the Miss USA while you were younger, what do you think of the pageantry world. I guess Little Miss Sunshine gave that world a bit of a bad rap . Can you talk about your personal experiences?
HB: I got a lot out of it. I was extremely insecure about myself, extremely shy, and introverted before I entered beauty pageants. So for me, it helped me shed that skin and that experience has helped me so much in my acting career. For me, it was all a positive. I won some and I lost some. I learned how to be a gracious winner and I learned how to be a gracious loser, and those things are really important in my life today. So many times, I get told "No," and I know how important it is that when you win you should be gracious and have humility, and realize that next time, you might lose. I learned things that were very instrumental in my life. My mother was not one of those pageant moms. I entered my first beauty contest on a fluke. My boyfriend entered me when I was 17 years old. He entered me in a contest because he thought it would be funny to see me, and I happened to win. And if you win one, you have to go on to the national competition,
STREET: Are you still taking care of that boyfriend today, or have you left him behind?
HB: He left himself behind by going to prison twice.
STREET: What's it like working with Bruce Willis?
HB: We were actually next door neighbors when the filming began, but then he moved. I almost bought his house actually.
STREET: Why didn't you buy it?
HB: I liked how the one I bought sat on the property better. They're both on the beach, and I wanted to be the house at the end of the beach, rather than the house next to the end of the beach.
STREET: Do you want to have kids at all?
HB: I hope so, I hope so.
STREET: I read on the internet that you were thinking about adopting at some point.
HB: Because somebody asked me at some point, would you ever adopt? I'm sure the thought has come through my head, but I'm not in the process of anything like that.
STREET: It's become very trendy to adopt in the past year.
HB: That rumor got attached to me too, but I am not in that process. We'll see. What happens will happen, hopefully.
STREET: What book are you reading right now?
HB: I just finished Barack Obama's book.
STREET: Are you supporting him?
HB: I will.
STREET: On the record?
HB: Yes, not just because he's a black man running. I read his book and I agree with his politics. On a real level, I support him, and I support what he's all about. You should read his book.
STREET: Do you have any directing aspirations, or do you only want to be an actress?
HB: I'm enjoying producing right now.
