How B.A.P.S. Became a Cult Classic

26 years ago, before she was an Academy Award winner, Halle Berry and Natalie Dess-Reid play as two best friends going to Beverly Hills to make their dreams come true. Right around the time the film premiered in 1997, the film received bad reviews until it gained popularity from the black community making it a cult classic. This is how B.A.P.S. became a cult classic.

Troy Beyer started out as an actress before she became a writer and psychologist. Beyer debuted on Sesame Street at the age of four just to pay her family's rent. She continued acting in her teens in Dynasty then acted on The Cotton Club, Rooftops, The Five Heartbeats, Weekend's at Bernie's II, and The Gingerbread Man. Around the time she was working as an actress, Beyer was unhappy with her career so she turns to writing film screenplay. That was when Beyer wrote her film screenplay B.A.P.S. (Black American Princesses).

The Story of the Film

The film tells a rags-to-riches story about two best friends: Nisi and Mickey working as waitresses from Georgia had dreams to start their own hair salon and restaurant business. The two fly to Los Angeles to audition for a music video and win a $10,000 cash prize. After their audition failed, they met with a limo driver who works with a Billionaire and invites them to live there to befriend a dying billionaire. the ladies realized and was tricked by his nephew who was getting them to scheme him. The film stars Halle Berry as Nisi and Natalie Desselle-Reid as Mickey, Ian Richardson as Manley, the butler, Martin Landau plays Mr. Blakemore the dying billionaire, Pierre Edwards and AJ Johnson as their broke boyfriends who also had dreams of starting their own cab business and Troy play as Mr. Blakemore's attorney. The film took place in Georgia and Beverly Hills, California, the film's budget was $10 million, and was directed by Robert Townsend. The film had celebrity guests including LL Cool J, Bernie Mac, Faizon Love, Dennis Rodeman, Heavy D, Howard Hewett, Leon Robinson, Rudy Ray Moore, and Karlie Redd as an extra (before her Love & Hip Hop fame)

The film premiered on March 28, 1997, theatrically and $7.3 million at the box office worldwide. The film received negative reviews criticizing the film's direction, the storyline of the film, and the cast. Ebert called the film "jaw-droppingly bad and stupid" and considered it the most hated list.

Even cast member Pierre Edwards believed the film was going to be "corny".

Beyer wasn't impressed with the film as well.

"I had written a film called B.A.P.S. When I saw the final cut, I was so devastated because I really believed that my words had not honestly made it onto the screen. The director was a writer/director himself and it was the first time he had directed someone else’s writing. He took the liberty of changing stuff as he shot the film. At the end of the day, when I saw the film, I hated it. I was really embarrassed and it was too late for me to take my name off the picture. Then I got killed by the critics. Me! The writer! I just thought I’m gonna take the money from this awful experience and put it into my own film. I’m gonna direct it and make sure my words make it to the screen. If the critics try to kill me now, there’s nothing they can say that’s gonna hurt me because I know that I did my very best. Those are my words on screen and I stand by them. So I took the money from B.A.P.S to make my movie."

Interview with IndieWire.com, SEPTEMBER 14, 1998.

After the B.A.P.S film, Beyer decided to direct her next screenplay, Let's Talk About Sex, and starred in the film. Beyer wrote and directed Love Don't Cost a Thing a teen romantic comedy based on the 1987 film Can't Buy that starred Nick Cannon and Christina Milan before they became a romantic item.

Despite the critics criticizing the film, the film gained a huge cult following thanks to the black community. In 2018, Anne Cohen of Refinery called it a "Black cult classic and deserves a better rotten tomatoes rating".

In 2020, Playwright and producer Je'Caryous Johnson adapted the film into a theatrical play. Natalie Desselle-Reid who portrays Mickey in the film was cast as Mickey and prepared to play the role that was until the 2020 pandemic that caused everything to shut down and Natalie's passing in December 2020. After the death of Natalie, Taryn Finley of HuffPost wrote an article "An Ode to Natalie Desselle-Reid" calling her a "gem" and a true B.A.P.S.

Excerpt from "An Ode to Natalie Desselle-Reid:

"I’m also furious at how unsung Desselle-Reid was. She was a gem. Our gem. She was undoubtedly appreciated, but she didn’t get a chance to enjoy all the flowers she rightfully deserved. Still, her cultural impact is indisputable. She opened doors for talented actors who didn’t fit the mold that Hollywood prescribes for Black women. And that influence can be felt today in actors like Natasha Rothwell, Da’Vine Joy Randolph, and Keke Palmer. So she may be gone, but her legacy is alive and well. Natalie Desselle-Reid was truly a Black American princess. "

Published on December 9, 2020

Her co-star Halle Berry shares an emotional tribute to Natalie on social media.

"Natalie represented actual Black women, not what Black women are perceived to be. For that, she was often underrated, passed over ― deprived of the platform she truly deserved. But her light continues to shine through the people who grew up watching her, the people who knew her best, and those of us who loved her.”

Berry posted on Twitter on December 7, 2020

In 2023, Johnson announced that B.A.P.S is back in production on stage this time starring Angela White aka "Blac Chyna" as Nisi and Inayah Lamis as Mickey.

If you are planning to see the play, Tickets are on sale.

Nisi and Mickey's costumes raise popularity in the community. Their costumes were most likely to wear for Halloween. Even Doja Cat and Rico Nasty wore similar costumes for their music video "Tia Tamera".

Honestly, this film is outstanding and I am glad that it gets recognition from the black community. This film was an incredible rag-to-riches tale except this film has nothing to do with the Pretty Woman concept and it glorifies the Pretty Woman film more than B.A.P.S.

So screw the critics!!!!!

Source

YouTube

Wikipedia

https://www.themoviedb.org/person/42974-troy-byer?language=en-US

https://madamenoire.com/228761/bet-you-didnt-know-secrets-behind-the-making-of-b-a-p-s/

https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/2018/07/205522/baps-bad-reviews-halle-berry-movie

My film review on B.A.P.S

Also, take a look at my story on Rusty and Darin (the two behind Tales from the Hood).

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