Mo’Nique Breaks Silence On Netflix Boycott, New Special, And Old Feuds
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Mo’Nique sued Netflix in November 2019, citing “pay discrimination.” The move followed her January 2018 decision to boycott the platform over color and gender bias. In the midst of her already being blackballed in Hollywood at the alleged hands of Lee Daniels, Oprah Winfrey, and Tyler Perry, she was vocal about her outrage and chose to “stand for the little girl coming behind me, [so] she won’t have to go through the same fight.”
Fast forward to March 2023, and fans are one month away from her highly-anticipated comedy special, My Name Is Mo’Nique, premiering on the streamer this April. Following the boycott and lawsuit, the Oscar winner spoke on the aftermath with The Hollywood Reporter.
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“We sat down with our attorneys, they had their attorneys, you go to mediation, and we were able to come up with something that everybody was good with. I think when adults come together in the room and sit down and have a reasonable conversation and a logical conversation, you work things out,” Mo’Nique, 55, explained.
Tracey Pakosta, VP of Comedy Series for Netflix, added, “Mo’Nique is an incredible talent who has proven herself across TV and film, winning well-deserved acclaim for projects spanning genres from comedy to drama. She’s built a loyal audience over the years, and we think her fans will love these new Netflix projects.”
While she and Daniels have both privately and publicly reconciled—to which she stated, “I don’t know if it’s ever been done in history—that a big Hollywood director came out and apologized to an actress for a wrongdoing”—the comedienne believes she’s still owed public apologies from Winfrey and Perry.
While campaigning to get the Precious star a long-awaited win, 50 Cent spoke with Perry last March, who admitted that he has nothing against Mo’Nique.
Fif reached out after saying, “I’m sure Oprah Winfrey and Tyler Perry would not want to continue to allow [their] influence to damage @therealmoworldwide career and this has gone on for way too long. So now would be a great time to apologize because i’m gonna put her back on.”
Despite the lack of formal apologies, the Queens rapper kept his word and gave her a spot on season two of BMF.
She also addressed her social media feud with D.L. Hughley, that began with an argument over who was the true headliner of a show on which they both were billed.
“I can’t tell you how many female comedians have had to deal with that,” she said. “‘Just because I’m a man, I’m supposed to go headline the show.’ Well, no, that’s not the case.”
“This one right here is personal,” teased the actress in the comedy special announcement. “When you walk away from this one, you’ll say, ‘Now we understand that woman’ […] Before I thought, I was just being funny. Now, I have something to say.”
My Name Is Mo’Nique debuts globally on April 4.
