The Color Purple had a Christmas to remember at the box office. Variety reports that the musical, which grossed $18 million on Monday, had the “largest Christmas Day opening for a film since 2009, and the second-biggest Christmas Day opening of all time” behind only 2009’s Sherlock Holmes. (If there’s one thing the late 2000s loved, it’s anything and everything Sherlock Holmes.) But The Color Purple is not only a hit among theatergoers. It’s also been praised by critics (89 percent “Fresh” ratings with Rotten Tomatoes), many of whom have singled out Fantasia‘s performance as a highlight.
The singer and former American Idol winner plays Celie Harris-Johnson in 2023’s The Color Purple, a role she reprised from the Broadway musical the movie is based on. The character was formerly portrayed by Whoopi Goldberg in an Oscar-winning performance in 1985’s The Color Purple.
When asked by Entertainment Weekly about her experience making The Color Purple, Fantasia replied, “I feel like there was once a time in my career where things were not so good. Days were not so bright, but I kept going and I never gave up. Through Celie, I caught my breakthrough and I’m grateful for that. If they can’t see it through me, then I allow myself to be a vessel so they can see it through Celie. I’m most proud of myself for standing up and doing things that I never thought I could do and bouncing back. It feels like Idol again. But I’m just wiser. I’m grown now.”
The Color Purple is out in theaters now (and streaming eventually).
(Via Variety and Entertainment Weekly)