Ice Cube has addressed claims made by Katt Williams about what went on during production on Friday After Next.
Williams told Shannon Sharpe in a nearly three-hour interview last week on the “Club Shay Shay” podcast, he wanted to set the record straight and called out several comedians, including his Friday After Next co-star Rickey Smiley.
Last year, Smiley appeared on the podcast and told Sharpe he was originally supposed to play the Money Mike character in the film, but the role ultimately went to Williams.
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Ice Cube, who produced and co-wrote the 2002 film with DJ Pooh, addressed Williams’ claims in a video he posted to Instagram on Jan. 5.
“We shot that movie over 20 years ago. People have different perspectives and it’s been a long time,” Ice Cube said.
He noted that most of what Williams told Sharpe was accurate, but said he wanted to clarify a few things.
“When we bring in a new comedian, we do have them try out for different roles. Rickey did give Money Mike a shot. But when we saw him, and saw how he moved in auditioning, we decided he would be a better Santa Clause, which was to me, the better casting. But when we saw Katt, I just knew he was perfect for Money Mike,” Ice Cube shared.
He also addressed Williams’ claim that he wrote the Money Mike part.
“The role was written, but he enhanced it. This is why Katt was so dope in the movie. Money Mike had a small role, about as big as the Santa Clause role, but when we started the filming, he was giving so much magic, that we kept expanding the role and giving him more to do, because he was on point,” Ice Cube said.
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Although he disputed the comedian’s assertion that there was originally a rape scene in the script.
“I would never shoot a rape scene, in a movie, especially like Friday, where you actually see this happening on camera,” said Cube. “That ain’t my style, if you check out any of my movies, they’re not raunchy.”
The three-film Friday franchise featured a slew of comedians before they became big stars, including Chris Tucker, Mike Epps, Faison Love, Williams and Smiley.
Ice Cube said he welcomed the chance to give rising stars opportunities.
“Every comedian that I’ve worked with, every comedian that I’ve put in a movie, I only put them in the movie because I thought they were funny,” the rapper and producer said. “I tried to put them in a position to win.”
Ice Cube also addressed complaints about the pay on the Friday films, which he described as “extremely low budget.”
He praised Katt Williams for always defending him, and said he’d like to see more comedians being supportive.
“I put a lot of people in movies, but they ain’t never put me in a movie, so you can take that for what it’s worth,” Ice Cube said. “I’m still waiting for a call.”
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