The 'Empire' alum calls the former daytime talk show host a 'good producer' after previously claiming she had to fight to have a driver during the production.
- Jan 12, 2024
AceShowbiz - Taraji P. Henson is grateful to Oprah Winfrey for "fixing" her issues on the set of "The Color Purple". The 53-year-old actress plays Shug Avery in the musical adaptation of Alice Walker's classic novel while media mogul Oprah, 69, served as producer and explained that whilst some people behind the scenes of Hollywood films don't bother to check in on the cast, the former talk show host was there through them throughout.
"I mean, she called and was like, 'If there's anything I can help you with, let me know. And I said, 'Well since you asked...' But this is the job of the producer, right? Some producers don't even come to set, y'all. This is a blessing that she came. … But my point is that that's the job of the producer, a good producer," she explained during a Q+A at the DGA Theater in West Hollywood after a screening of the film.
"And when I told her, she said, 'Say less.' The next day everything was fixed, and then she was on set for all the important and heavy lifts. She was there holding our hands with the whole thing, loving on us."
The former "Empire" star recently explained that she had criticised producers for giving herself and her co-stars rental cars to drive themselves to the set for filming, arguing it was an "insurance liability" and would be "dangerous" for them so took it upon herself to ameliorate the situation.
She told The New York Times newspaper, "They gave us rental cars, and I was like, 'I can't drive myself to set in Atlanta.' This is insurance liability, it's dangerous. Now they robbing people. What do I look like, taking myself to work by myself in a rental car? So I was like, 'Can I get a driver or security to take me?' I'm not asking for the moon. They're like, 'Well, if we do it for you, we got to do it for everybody.' Well, do it for everybody!"
"It's stuff like that, stuff I shouldn't have to fight for. I was on the set of 'Empire' fighting for trailers that wasn't infested with bugs. Thank you for pouring so much into us and believing in us and supporting us."
