Halle Berry is recalling filming her 2001 romantic thriller, Monster’s Ball. She ended up becoming the first African American woman to win the Best Actress Award at the Oscars. After years, Berry is admitting how the intimate scene with Billy Bob Thornton in the film was a risky move.
Halle Berry on her sex scene in Monster’s Ball
At the “Conan O’Brien Needs A Friend” podcast, Halle Berry talked about her sex scene in Monster’s Ball. She stated, “People around me said, because at that time I hadn’t done nudity, and the sex scene was like a big, like it had a big red light on it.” The X-Men star added, “I felt like this was either gonna be one of the best things I ever did or it would end my career.”
Berry exclaimed, “If this ends my career, then I’m ending my own career on my own beliefs.” During that time, she believed it was a “no money,” small, indie film. Moreover, the actor had “nothing to lose” by consenting to film the intimate scene. She expressed, “When you really believe that – and I do – I can still sit here 30 years later at 60 this year, not afraid to do anything really ’cause I still feel that way.” The 59-year-old continued, “I have nothing to lose. Nothing.” Berry concluded, “And that is a really empowering feeling that has allowed me to try many different things over my career.”
The actress also shared how bagging an Oscar for the film didn’t change the trajectory of her career. Berry told The Cut, “That Oscar didn’t necessarily change the course of my career.” She shared, she thought after the victory, there would be “a script truck” ready for her. “While I was wildly proud of it, I was still Black that next morning,” Berry admitted.
The mother of two continued, “Directors were still saying, ‘If we put a Black woman in this role, what does this mean for the whole story? Do I have to cast a Black man? Then it’s a Black movie. Black movies don’t sell overseas.”
