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Mo'Nique

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This article is about the comedian and actress. For the name, see Monique. For not to be confused with, see Nique.

Mo'Nique
Mo'Nique at the 82nd Academy Awards in 2010
Born
Monique Angela Imes

(1967-12-11) December 11, 1967 (age 57)
Woodlawn, Maryland, U.S.
Other namesMyelle Kaye
Occupations
  • Comedian
  • actress
  • talk show host
  • author
Years active1990–present
WorksFull list
Spouses
  • Calvin Watkins
    ​
    (divorced)​
  • Mark Jackson
    ​
    ​
    (m. 1997; div. 2001)​
  • Sidney Hicks
    ​
    (m. 2006)​
Children4
AwardsFull list
Websitemoniqueworldwide.com

Monique Angela Hicks (née Imes; born December 11, 1967), known mononymously as Mo'Nique, is an American comedian and actress.[1][2] She debuted as a member of The Queens of Comedy and earned recognition as a stand-up comedian. In 2002, she received a nomination for the Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album. She transitioned to mainstream roles starring in the UPN series The Parkers (1999–2004) and the films Phat Girlz (2006) and Welcome Home Roscoe Jenkins (2008).

Mo'Nique was critically acclaimed for her performance in the film Precious (2009), for which she won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, becoming the fourth African-American woman to win the award, in addition to accolades at the BAFTA, Golden Globe, and Screen Actors Guild Awards. After hosting her talk show The Mo'Nique Show (2009–2011), she earned a Primetime Emmy Award nomination for the HBO film Bessie (2015) and starred in Lee Daniels' Netflix film The Deliverance (2024).

Early life

[edit]

Mo'Nique was born on December 11, 1967, in Woodlawn, Baltimore County, Maryland,[1] the daughter of engineer Alice Imes and drug counselor Steven Imes Jr.[3] She is the youngest of four children. Mo'Nique graduated from Milford Mill High School in Baltimore County in 1985[4] and attended Morgan State University.[5] She is a 1987 graduate of the Broadcasting Institute of Maryland.[6]

Before she was an actress, Monique worked as a customer service representative at the phone company MCI in Hunt Valley, Maryland.[7] She got her start in comedy at the downtown Baltimore Comedy Factory Outlet when her brother Steve dared her to perform at an open mic night.

During a 2008 Essence magazine interview, Mo'Nique revealed that she was sexually abused by her brother Gerald from ages 7 to 11; he went on to sexually abuse another girl and was sentenced to 12 years in prison. After her twin boys were born in 2005, Mo'Nique cut off all contact with Gerald. On April 19, 2010, he admitted on Oprah to sexually abusing her over several years. He also was abused by family members and struggled with substance abuse.[8]

Career

[edit]

Mo'Nique portrayed Nicole "Nikki" Parker on the UPN television series The Parkers from 1999 to 2004. She was featured on many leading stand-up venues such as Showtime at the Apollo, Russell Simmons' Def Comedy Jam, and Thank God You're Here. Mo'Nique tackles race issues in her stand up routines, for instance at the Montreal Just For Laugh Festival in 2000: "White and black people, we're just mad at each other, we don't know why we're mad at each other. We're not each other's enemy. We're not the enemy. It's the Chinese people we need to watch out for".[9]

In 2005, Mo'Nique played a significant role in Tony Scott's thriller Domino, co-starring Keira Knightley and Mickey Rourke. In 2006, Mo'Nique was cast as the lead in Phat Girlz, a comedy about an aspiring fashion designer struggling to find love and acceptance. The film was met with lukewarm response from critics and fans. It did earn back its $3 million production cost in its first weekend of release.[10]

Mo'Nique at the 2010 Screen Actors Guild Awards

Mo'Nique's first play was Eve Ensler's Obie Award-winning production of The Vagina Monologues in March 2002. Mo'Nique, Ella Joyce (Roc); Wendy Raquel Robinson (The Steve Harvey Show and The Game) and Vanessa Bell Calloway (What's Love Got to Do with It), were the first all black celebrity cast to perform The Vagina Monologues. Produced by YYP & Associates, the show was directed by playwright and director Yetta Young as well as co-produced by Kellie R. Griffin, Lisa D. Washington and Anita Cal. Mo'Nique is the author of the best-selling book Skinny Women Are Evil: Notes of a Big Girl in a Small-Minded World. She also released a 2006 cookbook called Skinny Cooks Can't Be Trusted. Mo'nique was part of the Washington, D.C., WHUR radio show with George Wilborn. In 2006, she occasionally filled in for afternoon personality Michael Baisden when his contract with ABC Radio was in the process of getting renewed.[11]

She was also named hostess of Showtime at the Apollo. She was the hostess and executive producer of Mo'Nique's Fat Chance, a beauty pageant for plus-sized women, on the Oxygen cable network. She hosted the first season of Flavor of Love Girls: Charm School on VH1 where she crowned Saaphyri as the winner. Mo'Nique's 2007 documentary I Coulda Been Your Cellmate! focuses on incarcerated women. In interviews with individual women, she touches on the common factors that bring many women into the penal system. The documentary was related to her filming a comedy special at the Ohio Reformatory for Women, also known as The Farm. In 2007, she had a guest-starring role on the hit television series Ugly Betty as L'Amanda, Mode's weekend security guard.[12] She starred in The Mo'Nique Show, her own late-night talk show. Taped in Atlanta, the show premiered October 5, 2009, on BET.[13]

She was featured in soul singer Anthony Hamilton's video "Sista Big Bones", the second single from his album Ain't Nobody Worryin'. She hosted the 2003 and 2004 BET Awards and appeared as the host again for the 2007 BET Awards. She received positive responses in July 2004 with her opening performance of Beyoncé's single "Crazy in Love" In 2007, she performed Beyoncé's "Déjà Vu". Mo'Nique has had a number of supporting roles in film. She appeared in the 2008 comedy film, Welcome Home Roscoe Jenkins with Martin Lawrence. She has had roles in Beerfest, 3 Strikes, Two Can Play That Game, Half Past Dead, and Soul Plane. She voiced a character in Garfield: The Movie, but her role was cut from the movie.

In 2008, Mo'Nique stated on Oprah Winfrey Show that Martin Lawrence gave her invaluable advice about show business: "He pulled me to the side and he said, 'Listen, don't ever let them tell you what you can't have.' Since that day, I've made some of the best deals I've ever made in my career because it keeps ringing in my head...It will stay with me forever."[14] In 2008, Radio One signed her to her own radio show: Mo'Nique in the Afternoon (or The Mo'Nique Show), which premiered on several Radio One-owned Urban Adult Contemporary-formatted R&B/soul radio stations in July 2008. It mainly aired on these stations that had a local lineup because some Radio One stations did not carry it due to their contracts with Michael Baisden. The show lasted until March 18, 2009, when Mo'Nique decided to leave to "further her career in television, film, and comedy."[15]

Mo'Nique giving a speech in 2010

In 2009, Mo'Nique appeared in the film Precious, directed by Lee Daniels, portraying an inner-city teenager's abusive mother. She won the Sundance Film Festival Special Jury Prize for her performance in the film. The African-American Film Critics Association (AAFCA) awarded Mo'Nique with the Best Supporting Actress Award in December 2009. Mo'Nique received the AAFCA's first ever unanimous vote in an acting category.[16]

She has received Best Supporting Actress awards from the Stockholm International Film Festival, the Washington DC Area Film Critics Association, the Los Angeles Film Critics Association, the Boston Society of Film Critics, the New York Film Critics Online, the New York Film Critics Circle, the Southeastern Film Critics Association, the San Francisco Film Critics Circle, the Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Association, the Las Vegas Film Critics Society, the Utah Film Critics Association, the Detroit Film Critics Society, the Indiana Film Critics Association, the Online Film Critics Society, the National Society of Film Critics Awards, the Alliance of Women Film Journalists, and the Critics Choice Awards. Time magazine ranked Mo'Nique's outstanding performance as the Best Female Performance of 2009. She won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, the Independent Spirit Award, and the BAFTA Award.[17][18][19][20]

In November 2009, Mo'Nique said, "I own the rights to Hattie McDaniel's life story, and I can't wait to tell that story because that woman was absolutely amazing. She had to stand up to the adversity of black and white [society] at a time when we really weren't accepted. Mr. Lee Daniels is going to direct it, of course, and I'm going to be Miss Hattie McDaniel. I really hope I can do that woman justice."[21]

In 2014, Mo'Nique starred in Patrik-Ian Polk's drama film Blackbird as Claire Rousseau. She next starred as Ma Rainey in the biographical film Bessie in 2015, for which she received critical acclaim, earning her a Primetime Emmy Award nomination. Her last role (in film or television) was in 2016. In May 2017, she said Lee Daniels, Oprah Winfrey, and Tyler Perry had been blackballing her ever since she did not promote Precious in 2009.[22][23]

In 2022, it was announced that Mo'Nique will be starring in the Lee Daniels' horror/thriller The Deliverance with Andra Day, Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor, Omar Epps, Miss Lawrence, and Tasha Smith.[24]

Personal life

[edit]

Mo'Nique was married to sportswriter Calvin Watkins who she met in broadcasting school and had son Shalon Watkins, Jr. in 1990. She would later describe this marriage as abusive.[25][26] From 1997 to 2001, she was married to barber Mark Jackson. In October 2005, Mo'Nique gave birth to twin sons Jonathan and David Hicks two months before their due date.[27] In 2006, she married their father, Sidney Hicks. In a New York Times profile, she mentions that she and Hicks have an open marriage:

We have an agreement that we'll always be honest, and if sex happens with another person, that's not a deal breaker for us, that's not something where we'll have to say, 'Oh God, we've got to go to divorce court because you cheated on me.' Because we don't cheat.[28]

She repeated this view later on The Oprah Winfrey Show when she said that, in her prior marriages, she was constantly searching for "that extra oomph".[29] Mo'Nique explained,

When I said I had an open marriage, people automatically jumped to sex. They automatically went there. But I've been best friends with my husband since we were 14 years old. When we say open, we're very honest. There are no secrets. Oftentimes you have people that are married, but they're strangers, and we refuse to be those people.[30]

She concluded, "I've had to sneak and I've had to lie, and I don't want to do that anymore. But my husband is so awesome and so fine and so—oh, girl...No other man can compare".[30]

In her Netflix special My Name is Mo'Nique, released in April 2023, Mo'Nique disclosed that she experienced sexual attraction to women, stating that she was "not all the way" a lesbian, but that "when you're born with that, there's absolutely nothing you can do about it. Nothing. And please understand that I tried."[31][32][33][34]

Controversy

[edit]

2009 awards campaign

[edit]

In 2009, Mo'Nique starred in the independent drama Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire directed by Lee Daniels. For the role, she was paid $50,000. The film started to receive critical attention and awards buzz for her performance. The film's executive producers Tyler Perry and Oprah Winfrey, as well as the film's production company Lionsgate, asked her to travel to promote the film at the Cannes Film Festival, which she declined to do, saying her deal was with the film's director, Daniels, and that she had finished her contractual obligations.[35]

Upon winning the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, Mo'Nique stated, "I'd like to thank the Academy for showing that it can be about the performance and not the politics".[36]

Mo'Nique has since claimed Perry called her to apologize for how she was treated. In 2020, Mo'Nique performed a standup segment attacking Perry, Oprah and others involved in the feud. She has stated how devastated she was by Oprah's communication and described her as "malicious".[37][38][39]

2019 Netflix lawsuit

[edit]

In 2018, Mo'Nique accused Netflix of racial and gender bias against her after she was paid $500,000 for her comedy special to air on the streaming service. She compared herself to Dave Chappelle, Chris Rock, Kevin Hart, and Amy Schumer, who each received multimillion-dollar deals. In her statement, she stated:

When we asked Netflix to explain the difference—why the money was so different—they said, 'Well, we believe that's what Mo'Nique will bring.' We said, 'Well, what about my resume?' They said, 'We don't go off of resumes.' Then we asked them, 'What was it about Amy Schumer?' and they said, 'Well, she sold out Madison Square Garden twice and she had a big movie over the summer.' Is that not Amy Schumer's resume? And then Netflix said, 'By the way, we believe Mo'Nique is a legend, too.' Why shouldn't I get what the legends are getting?

In her statement, she also urged people to support her in her boycott of Netflix. She went on numerous talk shows, including The View, in which she continued to fight against Netflix. In 2019, she sued Netflix, with her complaint reading in part, "In short, as this lawsuit shows, Netflix's treatment of Mo'Nique began with a discriminatory low-ball offer and ended with a blacklisting act of retaliation." In the suit, she listed fellow comedians who were paid millions for their specials, including Chappelle, Rock, Jerry Seinfeld, Eddie Murphy, Ellen DeGeneres, and Ricky Gervais.[40]

By June 2022, Netflix had settled the lawsuit with Mo'Nique, and on July 19, 2022, announced that she was set to do a new special for them.[41][42]

Awards and nominations

[edit]
Main article: List of awards and nominations received by Mo'Nique

Mo'nique is the recipient of numerous accolades, most notably, for her performance in Precious, winning a total of 52 awards out of 66 nominations; in particular, the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role, and, the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture.

For her performance in The Parkers, Mo'nique has received four NAACP Image Awards in the category of Most Outstanding Actress in a Comedy Series. She has also been nominated for several roles, including, a Primetime Emmy Award for her work in the television film, Bessie, and a number of BET Awards for her contribution to comedy productions.

Filmography

[edit]

Film

[edit]
Key
† Denotes works that have not yet been released
Year Title Role Notes
2000 3 Strikes Dahlia
2001 The Queens of Comedy Herself
Baby Boy Patrice
Two Can Play That Game Diedre
2002 Half Past Dead Twitch's Girl
2004 Soul Plane Jamiqua
Hair Show Peaches
Garfield: The Movie Rat Role deleted in final cut of the film
2005 Shadowboxer Precious
Domino Lateesha Rodriquez
2006 Farce of the Penguins Vicky (voice)
Irish Jam Psycho
Phat Girlz Jazmin Biltmore
Beerfest Cherry
2008 Welcome Home, Roscoe Jenkins Betty
2009 Steppin: The Movie Aunt Carla
Precious Mary Lee Johnston Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress
2014 Blackbird Claire Rousseau
2016 Interwoven Barbara
Almost Christmas Aunt May
2023 The Reading Emma Leeden Also executive producer
2024 The Deliverance Cynthia Henry

Television

[edit]
Year Title Role Notes
1995 Snaps Herself Episode 1.1
1999–2000 Moesha Nicole "Nikki" Parker Recurring role; 3 episodes (Seasons 4 & 6)
1999–2004 The Parkers Lead role; 110 episodes
2001 The Hughleys Episode: "Forty Acres and a Fool"
2002 The Proud Family Boonnetta Proud (voice) Episode: "Behind Family Lines"
2003 Good Fences Ruth Crisp Television film
2004 The Bernie Mac Show Lynette Episode: "Who's That Lady?"
2005 Girlfriends Herself Episode: "See J-Spot Run"
2005–2007 Mo'Nique's Fat Chance Host / Herself Also executive producer
2006 Rugrats Aunt Moo (voice) Direct-to-DVD episode "Tales from the Crib: Three Jacks and a Beanstalk"
Nip/Tuck Evetta Washington Episode: "Conor McNamara"
2007 Flavor of Love Girls: Charm School Herself Host; 11 episodes (also producer)
The Game Plus Size Actress / Host Episode: "Diary of a Mad Black Woman, Redux"
The Boondocks Jamiqua (voice) Episode: "…Or Die Trying"
Ugly Betty L'Amanda Episode: "I See Me, I.C.U."
2009–2011 The Mo'Nique Show Herself Host; 251 episodes (also executive producer)
2014 Love & Hip Hop: New York Host of Season 4 (2 episodes – Reunion Special)
2015 Bessie Ma Rainey Television film
2023 Black Mafia Family Goldie Recurring role; 3 episodes (season 2)

Specials

[edit]
Year Title Role Notes
2007 Mo'Nique: I Could Have Been Your Cellmate Herself
2020 Mo'Nique & Friends: Live from Atlanta
2023 My Name is Mo'Nique

Tours

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Residency show

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b "Mo'Nique | Golden Globes". Hollywood Foreign Press Association. Retrieved February 16, 2024.
  2. ^ Fernandez, Sofia M. (August 1, 2011). "'Mo'Nique Show' Put on Indefinite Hiatus". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved February 16, 2024.
  3. ^ John-Hall, Annette (April 8, 2006). "Proudly 'phat' actress has a new, plus-sized role". AZ Central.com. Retrieved December 16, 2009.[permanent dead link‍]
  4. ^ "monique imes Milford Mill High School/Academy '85 BALTIMORE, MD". classmates.com. Retrieved December 13, 2015.
  5. ^ Crockett, Sandra (November 19, 1994). "Comedian has fine time just being Mo'Nique Laughing out LOUD". The Sun. Archived from the original on July 24, 2012. Retrieved December 16, 2009.
  6. ^ "Broadcasting Institute of Maryland". Archived from the original on February 27, 2011. Retrieved March 4, 2011.
  7. ^ The Oprah Winfrey Show, Interview with the cast of Welcome Home Roscoe Jenkins. Original air date January 28, 2008.
  8. ^ "Mo'Nique's Brother, Gerald Imes, Apologizes to Precious Star for Sexual Abuse". ABC News. Retrieved October 18, 2014.
  9. ^ "Montreal Just For Laugh Festival 2000". YouTube. May 22, 2015. Retrieved July 19, 2020.
  10. ^ "IMDb Bottom 100". IMDb.
  11. ^ "Monique to Fill in for Michael Baisden". All Access. Retrieved October 18, 2014.
  12. ^ "Mo'Nique to Guest Star on Ugly Betty". September 28, 2007. Retrieved October 16, 2021.
  13. ^ BET Coming Soon Monique Show Official Page Archived October 2, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
  14. ^ "Martin Lawrence's Advice to Mo'Nique". Oprah.com. Retrieved January 28, 2008.
  15. ^ "Syndicated Personality Mo'Nique to End Mo'Nique Show". Radio Online. Archived from the original on March 17, 2009. Retrieved March 24, 2009.
  16. ^ "2009 Supporting Actress". The Film Experience. Archived from the original on April 9, 2009.
  17. ^ "The Hurt Locker Schools An Education, Avatar at Brit-Snubbing BAFTAs". E!. February 22, 2010.
  18. ^ "2009 Supporting Actress". The Film Experience. Archived from the original on April 9, 2009.
  19. ^ "OSCAR PREDICTION CHARTS". InContention.com. February 23, 2009.
  20. ^ "Will Sandra Bullock, Mo'Nique Meet Their New Man, 'Oscar'". Lexib.net. Archived from the original on February 16, 2015. Retrieved March 6, 2010.
  21. ^ Ben; Walters (November 15, 2009). "Comic Mo'Nique takes dramatic turn in "Precious"". Reuters.
  22. ^ "Today in Entertainment: Katy Perry cops to that Taylor Swift feud; Vanity Fair's 'Star Wars' covers cue the waterworks". Los Angeles Times. June 2017. Retrieved July 19, 2020.
  23. ^ "Mo'Nique: I Was "Blackballed" After Winning My Oscar". The Hollywood Reporter. February 19, 2015.
  24. ^ Jones, Monique. "Lee Daniels' 'The Deliverance,' Starring Mo'Nique After Years-Long Feud, Adds Omar Epps, Miss Lawrence And More To Cast". Shadow and Act. Retrieved October 22, 2022.
  25. ^ "Skinny Women Are Evil Notes of a Big Girl in a Small-Minded World". Atria Books. April 6, 2004. ISBN 978-0-7432-4456-5.
  26. ^ Yarbrough, Marti (November 11, 2002). "Actress and comedienne Mo'Nique of the Parkers talks about her: career new book 'Skinny Women are Evil' new fiance". JET Magazine.
  27. ^ "Mo'Nique a New Mom Again – of Twins". People. Archived from the original on August 23, 2016. Retrieved October 18, 2014.
  28. ^ Lee, Felicia R. (August 5, 2007). "Luckily, There's Plenty of Her for Everybody". The New York Times. p. 2.
  29. ^ Sheri Salata (Producer). (January 28, 2008). The Oprah Winfrey Show. Chicago: Harpo Productions, Inc.
  30. ^ a b "Mo'Nique on her open marriage". Oprah.com. Archived from the original on January 31, 2008. Retrieved January 28, 2008.
  31. ^ Griffin, Marc (April 6, 2023). "Mo'Nique Recalls Telling Husband About Sexual Fantasies With Women: "The Mask Had To Come Off"". VIBE.com. Retrieved April 8, 2023.
  32. ^ Duncan, Charlie (April 7, 2023). "Mo'Nique comes out as queer and slams religion for 'ripping apart families'". PinkNews. Retrieved April 8, 2023.
  33. ^ Bell, BreAnna (April 6, 2023). "In Netflix Special, Mo'Nique Recounts Confessing 'Fantasy' of Being With Another Woman to Her Husband: 'The Mask Had to Come Off'". Variety. Retrieved April 8, 2023.
  34. ^ Phillips, Carmen (April 5, 2023). "Mo'Nique Grapples With Her Queer Desires, Fear, and Coming Out In New Netflix Special". Autostraddle. Retrieved April 8, 2023.
  35. ^ "Mo'Nique On Why She's Calling For A Netflix Boycott on The View". Youtube. Retrieved April 14, 2022.
  36. ^ "Mo'Nique winning Best Supporting Actress". Oscars. March 12, 2010. Retrieved April 14, 2022.
  37. ^ "She's Not Done: Mo'Nique Explains Devastating Fallout With Oprah Winfrey". Essence. October 26, 2020. Retrieved April 14, 2022.
  38. ^ "Mo'Nique Says She Recorded Tyler Perry Expressing Regret Over How He Treated Her". Complex. Retrieved April 14, 2022.
  39. ^ "Mo'Nique Speaks Out Against Oprah Winfrey for Making Her Life Harder". E News. February 4, 2020. Retrieved April 14, 2022.
  40. ^ "Mo'Nique Sues Netflix for Discrimination Over $500K Stand-Up Special Offer". The Hollywood Reporter. November 14, 2019. Retrieved April 14, 2022.
  41. ^ "Netflix Settles With Mo'Nique Over Discrimination, Retaliation Lawsuit". The Hollywood Reporter. June 15, 2022. Retrieved June 17, 2022.
  42. ^ "Oscar Winner Mo'Nique Announces First Netflix Comedy Special". Variety. July 19, 2022. Retrieved July 25, 2022.
  43. ^ Brock Radke (January 10, 2019). "MO'NIQUE KICKS OFF HER FIRST VEGAS COMEDY RESIDENCY AT SLS". lasvegasweekly.com. Retrieved February 12, 2019.
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