Celie

... from, from the movie version of The Color Purple.

But first, what was your audition for the Broadway Re- Revival when you first got to play Celie?

Oh my gosh, Terry.

So I mean, it's, it's layered, okay? Because I had seen, um, The Color Purple on Broadway at 15.

But I remember, like, they had a table with the director and producers, and I went straight up to that table, and I tapped that table, and I was like, "All my life, I've had to fight." And I just remember them being like, "Whoa."

[laughs]

And I could feel them being like, "Yeah, this is our Celie because of course Celie would have enough kahunas to come up to the table and get right in our face," [laughs] you know?

Oh, that is great.

Extraordinary moving story.

Celie has her perseverance through many trials of her life.

I don't want to spoil it too

much.

This film hits so incredibly hard.

The narrative covers roughly 40 years in the life of Celie, played in a breakout role by Whoopi Goldberg.

We watch as this black woman endures unimaginable abuse, systemic poverty and bigotry, suffering horrifically at the hands of her violent father and her deeply despicable husband, Albert Johnson, played by Danny Glover.

It's so tough to watch at times.

at that stage in his career many critics at the time questioned if he had the necessary gravitas but what is so fascinating about spielberg's approach to the material is how he utilized his mastery of visual storytelling he used the accessible framework of a domestic story a story confined largely to a rural household a fraught marriage and a fractured family to sneak in incredibly profound sharp social commentary on toxic chauvinism the inescapable cycles of abusive parenting, and ultimately the triumphant healing power of female unity.

How did his specific visual style translate to this material, though?

Well, look at how he frames Celie early in the film versus later.

Early on, Spielberg shoots her through windows, behind fences, trapped in tight, claustrophobic framing.

And it's been such a pleasure to watch her go from not really dating, not meeting men, not feeling like she was good enough, worthy enough to...

I tell her all the time, I'm like, girl, you went from Celie to Suge Avery because like the woman that you are now, like you feel like a ball of fire.

You feel like a woman who is completely in charge of her life and can pretty much have what she wants, including the man that she wants.

So I'm excited about this episode and the full circle moment that we have here.

But because certain people can't take it, it makes room for the people who not only can take it and want it, they want to uphold it and honor it.

Speaking of speaking of movie premiere, for those who don't know, One of her movies that she starred in was The Color Purple, the new version that came out.

And what I'm noticing here from our work together, it feels like you, because she played Celie in the movie, young Celie.

When you first came to me, you came to me as young Celie.

Okay.

I mean, it almost sounds like Celie in The Color Purple when you're like, he did his business on me.

Yes.

Yeah.

You find out that there's this woman named Suge Avery, who is a singer, and Danny Glover's character is in love with her and wishes that he had married her, but he missed his chance.

She comes to town and it's this weird experience where all of a sudden Danny Glover is being really nice to her and Celie ends up bonding with her and Suge ends up, I don't think I'm missing a lot of plot here.

Suge ends up writing a song for Celie and they share this nice bond.

Meanwhile, the son of Danny Glover has gotten married to Oprah Winfrey and they had a very tumultuous relationship because he's been told by his father that he needs to beat her to keep her in line because she's this very strong personality.

So they have kids, but the relationship doesn't work out because, shockingly, that's a bad philosophy.

Suge comes there.

She's performing in it.

She sings this song for Celie.

And then Fantasia, she also was in The Color Purple.

She, she was, she's probably the most well-known Celie from The Color Purple musical.

I was so annoyed when she got that role because I had just seen the original cast.

I'm like, "No, I wanna watch it with Fantasia." [laughs]

Sandy, anything from you? I

don't know if it's like goosebumps, but at the end of The Color Purple, when Celie gets reunited with her sister.

Oh, you like that? The frantic run, that desperation, that need for home.

And it just...