Brian White Talks Good Deedsby Wilson Morales
February 28, 2012
Currently playing in theaters is Tyler Perry’s latest film, ‘Good Deeds,’ his first non-Madea film where he’s the leading character.
Starring along with him are familiar faces from his previous films such as Thandie Newton, Gabrielle Union, Brian White and Phylicia Rashad. Also included in the film are Rebecca Romijn, Jamie Kennedy, Eddie Cibrian, Jordenn Thompson and Beverly Johnson.
Schedule to marry Natalie (played by Gabrielle Union), businessman Wesley Deeds (played by Tyler Perry) is jolted out of his scripted life when he meets Lindsey (played by Thandie Newton), a single mother who works on the cleaning crew in his office building.
For White, who plays Walter’s brother Wesley, this is his third outing in a Perry film after making appearances in 2007’s ‘Daddy’s Little Girls’ and 2009’s ‘I Can Do Bad All By Myself.’ The Boston, MA native has been working steadily for the last 10 years on both the big and small screen with film roles in ‘Stomp The Yard,’ ‘Fighting’ and ‘Politics of Love;’ as well as television roles in ‘The Shield’ and ‘Men of a Certain Age.’ He’s even done theater having done the play ‘What My Husband Doesn’t Know’ with singer and former Destiny’s Child member Michelle Williams.
Blackfilm.com caught up with White as he spoke about his role in Good Deeds, working with Tyler Perry, and his upcoming role in ‘The Cabin in the Woods.’
How would you describe Walter Deeds?
Brian White: Walter and Wesley are two sides from the same coin. The relationship between them and their father was tumultuous, strange and when you take an individual and place them under duress, there’s two ways that individual can respond. One is to become an overachiever and the other is to self destruct. As a character study, you have the other side being exploited at the same time in this movie and that’s how I would describe him. As the movie progresses, you see one son not having the life that he wanted and another so yearning for it. It’s Tyler’s character who inherits that life and is strong enough to fill those shoes, but doesn’t find enjoyment in it. It’s a great topic to explore in the social media circles when everyone is trying to keep up with the joneses with their status post and facebook updates, and pictures; but does any of it make them happy. That’s debatable on a lot of levels and that’s what this movie is about.
What was the attraction to doing the film?
BW: Tyler (Perry) lets me do characters that no one else lets me do. These are characters that are disparate from Brian. I’m a guy that has five younger sisters. I’m the eldest and only boy. I’m a pioneer for women’s rights, black women’s right, for education. I wrote a book called ‘Black Carpenter’ and I’m out on tour and educating kids through scholarship opportunities and financial literacy. I’ve always been given opportunities in Tyler’s movies to be a messenger. You can be a hero. You can be the antagonist who helps deliver the message on either end of the story if you tell a good story and Tyler is good at that. There are always those cautionary tale characters that elevate the protagonist or hero, often the heroine, to realize her message; to deliver the message to the audience.
In ‘Daddy’s Little Girls,’ I’m in two scenes, but every time the movie comes on, they remember him, and they tweet me out and say things like, “Stay away from my daddy, you tramp!” I wanted to make the wolf in sheep’s clothing something that people don’t want to aspire to be. I want players to know that stuff happens and that is what it looks like and it’s not cool. Your kids see that and you have to live the rest of your life with those relationships that you broke. That’s not cool. I don’t want to ever see it. I’m not about it. You show a realistic portrayal of the cautionary tale and they should be laughed at. It should not be celebrated or glorified. It’s fun, but it’s also tragic. That’s why I did it. I flew myself to Atlanta to do that role and it was two scenes and no money. He had me back for ‘I Can Do Bad All By Myself’ and said that the role couldn’t be further away from me. He said “I believe in you as artist and as an actor that you can play the role with integrity.” The attraction was not only that challenge as a professional but help and elevate Taraji’s message of “I don’t need this BS in my life and I can make better choices and that is what it’s all about.” To elevate from something, you have to go through a struggle.
How was working with Tyler, playing his brother, and working with Phylicia Rashad?
BW: Tyler is like a big brother to me. It was amazing. He’s a mentor. I look up to him and take what he says to heart. I value his opinion tremendously. It was incredible. We have that relationship and when he asked to be a part of this film, I was very much honored. It’s the most personal story he’s ever told, on or off the theatrical stage because he’s done so many plays. With Phylicia, it was a trip. I’m a huge fan and she and my mom her have a similar look. My mom was always called ‘Mrs. Cosby’ by my friends when I was a kid. To look into someone’s eyes, who favors your mom and you have idolized all these years, was a trip. She’s an incredible woman, person, and in this movie, haunting. She’s dynamic in ways that I had no idea she was capable of. She’s one of the best actresses I’ve ever worked with or seen.
In just a few months, you have another film coming out, ‘The Cabin in the Woods.’ What’s your role in that film?
BW: There are good guys. There are bad guys and there are guys in between and I’m not a good guy or bad guy. My character Alex Truman is neither of those. The directors Joss Whedon, and Drew Goddard are mad scientists and it was a blessing to be a part of that. It has everything and it’s was one of the coolest films I’ve ever seen. You have Richard Jenkins and Bradley Whitford heading the cast, and they are some of the best actors on the planet. You have some young superstars like Chris Hemsworth, Jesse Williams and it was delicious script. It won’t disappoint fans.
