Corey Hawkins (INTERVIEW)
Corey
Hawkins
The
“Straight Outta Compton” Interview
with
Kam Williams
Straight
Outta Corey!
Born
in Washington, DC on October 22, 1988, Corey Hawkins studied acting
at Juilliard before making his big screen debut in 2012 opposite Bow
Wow in Allegiance. The next year, he appeared in Iron Man 3 with
Robert Downey, Jr., and in Non-Stop with Liam Neeson the year after
that.
Here,
he talks about his breakout role playing Dr. Dre in Straight Outta
Compton, a biopic about the legendary rap group NWA.
Kam
Williams: Hey
Corey, how's it going?
Corey
Hawkins:
Awesome,
Kam! Awesome! I'm on Cloud 9!
KW:
What interested you in Straight Outta Compton? Were you a fan of NWA?
CH:
Absolutely!
I was definitely a fan of NWA growing up. I was a fan of their music
because it hit so close to home. I grew up in the DMV [Washington, DC
metropolitan area]. I always liked their music and honest music in
general.
KW:
How did
you approach playing Dr. Dre? Did you consult him for pointers?
CH:
I spoke
with him every day. He was on set every day. He didn't want me to
imitate him or mimic him or do an impersonation. He didn't want me to
stare at him and watch how he moved. Because of my training, he was
willing to trust the craft. He just wanted me to capture what NWA
spoke to in terms of their lyrics and in terms of what they were
representing as young black artists coming out of Compton.
KW:
I
recently interviewed Ving Rhames, who also graduated from Juilliard.
Are you also an advocate of studying acting?
CH:
Definitely!
In fact, Ving and I spoke at the premiere, and he was very supportive
of me and very positive about the movie. He's a great guy! And, yes,
I am an advocate of what I did as far as training, especially as an
African-American in this business. It's getting better, but there's
still that stigma that we can only do one thing. I hope to break down
that barrier and play whatever type of character in whatever genre of
picture I'm interested in. But you need the versatility to be able to
do that, and the versatility comes through your training. I think
Juilliard was a great playground for that, because you could be open
to anything. It was very disciplined, so you know, technically, how
to get to where you need to get to.
KW:
It also
helps when you have colorblind casting being encouraged by people on
the others side of the camera like writer/producers like Shonda
Rhimes.
CH:
Yeah,
Shonda... and the writer on Gabrielle Union's show, Being Mary Jane,
Mara Brock Akil. There are so many different writers and producers
behind the scenes who are pushing for us now. That's what we need
more of, the people creating the stories. We can't expect others to
write our stories. That's where I hope to get one day, and I look at
Cube [Ice Cube] as a mentor now, because I see what he's done with
this film. Straight Outta Compton isn't just any old rap biopic, but
a story about complex characters, and that's what you get onscreen.
KW:
The
film is also very timely, given its focus on police brutality and the
recent rise of the Black Lives Matter movement. Is that a lucky
coincidence or divine intervention?
CH:
It might be divine
intervention, Kam, because this script had been circulating for the
past thirteen years. It's sad that the issue is still relevant.
Being a black kid in Compton, you shouldn't feel like you're living
in a war zone. As the society devotes more attention to the issue, I
think police officers are starting to see what's going on a little
more clearly. Hopefully, this film will continue the dialogue,
because we definitely attack the subject without letting up, in the
same way N.W.A. attacked it back then with the record “Straight
Outta Compton.”
KW:
What
message do you think people will take away from?
CH:
It
might sound like a cliché, but what we really want is for people to
feel inspired. If you look at what the people we portray in this
movie accomplished and where they came from, I hope people take away
that you can achieve anything. I hope it inspires young kids growing
up in inner-cities like I did to make positive choices in the
circumstances they were given. You feel this movie. You feel L.A. You
feel the humiliation. You feel the pride. You root for them. You
laugh. You cry. You really go on a ride without even knowing it. I
love seeing everybody's reaction to it, whether they're black, white,
Latino or Asian. It's such a powerful story.
KW:
Is there any question no one ever asks you, that you wish someone
would?
CH:
I don't
think so. I've been getting a lot of different questions.
KW:
What is your favorite dish to cook?
CH:
I
actually can't cook. [Laughs] I wish I could. I'm mostly a carry-out
kind of guy, ordering pizza and stuff.
KW:
The
bookworm Troy Johnson question: What was the last book you read?
CH:
”Your
Face in Mine.”
I
was also reading “The Circle” which is sort of a commentary on
the dangers of social media today. It's a very powerful novel.
KW:
When
you look in the mirror, what do you see?
CH:
A human
being. A young, smart, dedicated, driven person that
African-Americans can be proud of.
KW:
Who
loved you unconditionally during your formative years?
CH:
Everybody
in my family. That's how we operate. We all love each other
unconditionally. We fight, we argue, but we love unconditionally at
the core. That's what makes family family. And I can't say one loved
me more than another.
KW:
The Ling-Ju Yen question: What
is your earliest childhood memory?
CH:
I
remember singing in church. My grandmother was very heavily involved
in the church. I loved the theatrical nature of church, too. That
might have contributed to my going into acting.
KW:
The Harriet Pakula-Teweles question: With so many classic films being
redone, is there a remake you'd like to star in?
CH:
That's
a great question. I'd love to remake The Godfather.
KW:
The Viola Davis question: What’s
the biggest difference between who you are at home as opposed to the
person we see on the red carpet?
CH:
That's
another good question. These are the ones nobody's been asking. I'm
the same person.at home and on the red carpet, although I'm a little
more shy at home.
KW:
The
Judyth Piazza question: What key quality do you believe all
successful people share?
CH:
Discipline
and a willingness to work harder than anyone else.
KW:
Lastly,
what’s in your wallet?
CH:
What’s
in my wallet? [LOL] I don't know.
KW:
Thanks
again for the time, Corey, and best of luck with the film .
CH:
Thank
you, Kam.
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