MEET 'ANTWONE FISHER'S' JOY BRYANT: Actress almost cussed Denzel out.
by Kenya M. Yarbrough
Joy Bryant
(Jan. 10, 2003) Bronx native Joy Bryant is true to her name. The up-and-coming actress has found joy in a new talent and loves every minute of it, thanks mostly in part to her recent project – “Antwone Fisher.”
While this is her meaty role in a feature film, Bryant is recognizable.
She made her on-screen debut opposite Beyonce Knowles in the MTV flick “Carmen: A Hip Hopera.” She then snagged a small role in the Eddie Murphy and Robert DeNiro comedy “Showtime.”
But before getting bit by the acting bug, Bryant was a Yale student-turned -successful fashion model with a Victoria Secrets catalog cover under her belt.
Now, Bryant stars in “Antwone Fisher,” where she plays Cheryl, the title character’s love interest in the Denzel Washington-directed film. Not a bad feat for someone fairly new in the game. It was so fantastic, Bryant could hardly believe it herself.
“I had just finished the third audition with Denzel, and I went back to my friend’s house,” she said, describing how she learned she got the part. “I was feeling a bit bummed out and then the cell phone rings – and my character’s name is Cheryl – and the man on the line said, ‘Hi, is Cheryl there?’ I said, ‘You have the wrong number.’ And he said, ‘Is this Joy? This is Denzel.’ I thought, ‘This ain’t Denzel.’ He almost got cussed out,” she laughed.
Fortunately before she could give Washington the “who the hell is this," the film’s producer and casting director jumped on the line to convince her it was truly the Academy Award-winning actor welcoming her aboard on the film.
As many fans expect, Bryant said that working with Washington was a great learning experience and an awesome opportunity. The starlet told us that although “Antwone Fisher” was his first time directing, everyone on the set felt like he knew what he was doing.
“I felt totally confident with him. I learned so much from him,” she said. “The theme of the whole shoot was ‘less is more.’ He asked for subtlety, honesty, and said, ‘Don’t act, just be.’ Those are the things that he just kept pushing,” she described.
Bryant admits that those simple words helped her a lot in addition to Washington’s advice to really study her character. She found it very important to learn and read into her the role because she felt she wasn’t much like her character at all.
“[Cheryl] had to be approachable to [Antwone],” she explained. “Cheryl had to be this understanding, very cool and gentle person. I, personally, have a lot of fire – Antwone wouldn’t feel comfortable approaching me. That was really difficult because I had to be aggressive, but not too aggressive. I had to change my rhythm and bring out that side of me. That quiet side. I just focused on that.”
Even more so, Bryant said she actually relates more the title character than her own. She, like Antwone Fisher, was not raised by her parents and doesn’t know her father very well. Fisher grew up in the foster system and never knew his father.
“I relate more to Antwone’s character than Cheryl. I know many people who have been in foster care, people who have been abused. My own personal [relationship] with my father is nothing like Cheryl’s. I don’t even really know my dad,” she said.
With that, Bryant says she’s prepared for any new relatives who might come out of the woodwork thanks to her newfound success, but she’s not bitter. She said she’ll deal with them delicately.
“I don’t hold any grudges, I made peace with everything. It’d be interesting to hear why things are they way they are though,” she admitted.
Bryant said she’ll cross that bridge when she comes to it. In the meantime, she is moving on and in fact just wrapped up her next movie, “Honey,” where she co-stars with Jessica Alba and Mekhi Phifer.
“Antwone Fisher” is currently in theaters nationwide. “Honey,” described as a modern, urban “Flashdance,” is in post production and expected in theaters later this year.
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