Terrence Howard talks new movie, 'Hustle & Flow' and why he feels 'like a son of Memphis'

Terrence Howard, the Oscar-nominated star of the made-in-Memphis "Hustle & Flow," returns to the Bluff City this week to invite you to join him at "the safe haven for our dreams," where you will see him fire an arrow at a goon, impale an adversary on a samurai sword, and play a little guitar.

"Safe haven for our dreams" is Howard's term for "movie theater," or, more broadly, the tradition of moviegoing itself. It's a habit he hopes to encourage with the Memphis "theatrical world premiere" of "Showdown at the Grand," a new movie in which the actor plays a proud cowboy-hatted cinema owner who battles a hostile would-be takeover with crossbow, katana and a few improvised weapons. (Note to self: During a projection booth brawl, an old-school reel of celluloid is more useful than a digital download.)

"It's more of a movement than a movie," Howard, 54, said of his efforts to promote the cinema experience via his new film (which, in fact, will receive only a limited theatrical release to complement its Nov. 10 availability on what the movie's distributor touts as "all major digital platforms").

"You've gotta remember, all these movie theaters around the world have been affected by COVID, but also by technology," said Howard, in his gruff but soothing voice, so familiar from such projects as "Iron Man" (the 2008 movie that launched the Marvel Cinematic Universe) and "Empire" (the music-industry drama that ran from 2015 to 2020 on the Fox network).

"When theaters shut down, you're also shutting down a central place for all types of people to congregate," he said, in a phone interview prior to his arrival in Memphis. "It's a town square, a place to communicate ideas and entertainment. It goes back to the oral traditions of our humanity, which separates us from the beasts and the animals."

Terrence Howard: Professional career 'born' in Memphis

Accompanied by his wife, Mira Pak Howard, who is a producer of the new film, Howard will be in Memphis most of this week, to promote "Showdown at the Grand" and meet-and-greet fans at the Malco Summer Quartet Drive-In, the Paradiso in East Memphis, and, most notably, the Powerhouse in the South Main District, where Howard will perform on guitar and piano, tell stories and host what is billed as the "world theatrical premiere" of the movie. Dubbed "Tales & Tunes with Terrence," the 6:30 p.m. Wednesday event is A Colored Girls Production, presented by Film Commission board members Gale Jones Carson and Tajuan Stout Mitchell as a benefit for the workshop/apprenticeship programs of the Memphis & Shelby County Film and Television Commission.

Howard appreciates the support.

"I was adopted into Memphis and I feel like a son of Memphis because my professional career was born there," said the actor, who refers to Memphis Film Commissioner Linn Sitler as "Auntie Linn" and to "Hustle & Flow" writer-director Craig Brewer as "a G forever — my man, 100 grand."

Born in Chicago and raised in what he says was an abusive environment in Cleveland, Howard had been an actor for a decade before the back-to-back awards contenders "Crash" and "Hustle & Flow" brought him widespread recognition close to 20 years ago.

In 2004, he was a key contributor to the ensemble cast of "Crash," which won the Academy Award for Best Picture. The next year, he was nominated for Best Actor for his starring role as a soulful Memphis pimp named DJay in Brewer's "Hustle & Flow," which earned a Best Original Song Oscar for "It's Hard Out Here for a Pimp," composed by Juicy J, DJ Paul and Frayser Boy.

The acclaim that accompanied "Hustle" explains why Howard says his career was "born" in Memphis. "You gotta think from antiquity, what Memphis represented to Egypt, it was where alchemy was born from," said Howard, referring to Memphis' namesake city in Africa. "It's a place of prophets and magic. And being able to be associated with a city that has that same alchemy, that could turn a normal person like DJay into a household name around the world, not because he was a pimp but because he was a human being trying to be better than his circumstances allotted, that's an honor."

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David Tashie, president and CEO of the Memphis-based and family-owned Malco Theatres circuit, said the company was "honored" that Howard wanted "to come back, share his story, and have the world premiere at a Malco theater," in the city where he "found success some 18 years ago."

'Showdown at the Grand'

An action comedy-drama that functions as a love letter to the movies, inked in blood and dripping with popcorn butter, "Showdown at the Grand" was written and directed by Orson Oblowitz, and is being distributed by Shout! Studios, a company that mainly focuses on DVD and Blu-ray. More economical even than "Hustle & Flow," the movie was shot over 19 days in Los Angeles, on a budget of about $1.7 million.

"Showdown" casts Howard as George Fuller (the surname is a nod to revered action auteur Sam Fuller), owner of a struggling movie palace, the Warner Grand. The movie palace was cast as itself, so to speak: Much of the film was shot in the actual Warner Grand, built in 1931 in the Los Angeles neighborhood of San Pedro. In that historic and memorabilia-packed lobby and auditorium, Fuller's cowboy-style wardrobe — chosen by Howard for the character — hardly seems out of place. Explained the actor: "We were in the costume house, walking through, and you're like a dowsing rod — you get a feeling. 'You know what, I want to try that on.' It starts as a joke but each thing you put on becomes part of you, like Dr. Strange and that cape, coming alive."

Fuller soon has to prove he's more than a big hat. When thuggish enforcers of a real-estate mogul attempt to strong-arm him into selling his theater, Fuller — like DJay — discovers that his makeshift family has his back. Aiding the theater owner in what becomes a literal battle of preservation are a young cinephile (Piper Curda, who also is in Todd Haynes' new movie, "May December"); a pawn shop-owner neighbor (veteran actor John Savage); and a visiting action-movie icon, Claude Luc Hallyday (played by actual action-movie icon Dolph Lundgren), whose violent halberd-wielding presence erases the line between real and reel life.

At one point, Hallyday is described as "the first actor to copulate with a robot on film." As Howard sings over the end credits in "World Gone Crazy," a song he composed for the movie: "Baby, this world is so crazy/ Everybody's losing their minds..."

Despite the craziness, "This film is about looking after your neighbor while looking after yourself," said Howard (who was granted a waiver to promote the independently produced "Showdown" during the ongoing SAG-AFTRA strike). To that end, Terrence and Mira Pak Howard have launched an online platform called "Holly," at myholly.app, which is billed as "a new home for actors, directors, artists, writers and fans," and "the future of talent discovery." The app is intended to "democratize the entertainment industry," Mira Pak Howard said — to be a space where people can post audition tapes, talent reels and other content, without the need of talent agents or traditional representation. "If you want to get noticed by the industry, you have to show them you've got what it takes," she said.

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Meanwhile, Terrence Howard will be showing his own talent at the Powerhouse, onscreen and off. "I'll play some piano and guitar and talk to everybody about how I transfer my anger or whatever stimuli I've dealt with into my music and art, to help me deal with some of the hardships that have come around in my life."

And what will he do in Memphis when he's not at a movie theater? "I'm hoping to catch one of the Grizzlies games," Howard said. Referring to the Al Kapone-penned track that was introduced in "Hustle & Flow," he added: "I hear they're playing our song, 'Whoop That Trick.'"

Terrence Howard: Back in Memphis with 'Showdown at the Grand'

"Tales and Tunes with Terrence" and "Showdown at the Grand" world theatrical premiere: 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 8, at Malco Powerhouse, 540 S. Front. Howard will perform on guitar and piano and discuss his career, prior to the film. A Colored Girls Production, the event will benefit programs of the Memphis Film Commission. Tickets: $100, or $150 (includes VIP reception). Visit eventbrite.com.

"Showdown at the Grand" and "Hustle & Flow" double feature: 6:30 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 9, Summer Quartet Drive-In, 5310 Summer. Public appearance by Terrence Howard. "Showdown" also will screen Nov. 10-12 at the drive-in. Regular ticket prices apply. Tickets: malco.com.

"Showdown at the Grand" at the Malco Paradiso: The movie begins a weeklong run Friday, Nov. 10, at the Paradiso, 584 S. Mendenhall. Howard will appear at some screenings. Regular ticket prices apply. Visit malco.com.

This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Terrence Howard talks new movie, 'Hustle & Flow' and love for Memphis