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Sheryl Lee Ralph is reveling in a career renaissance.
Since then, Ralph has nourished her creative appetite across mediums.
(That daughter was played by a pre-Fugees Lauryn Hill, then only 16 years old.)
For Ralph, the role was an amusing departure from her real life as a Broadway star.
Why was Mama Florence so unreasonably mean?
WithSister Act 2, I met with Bill Duke, a great director.
Now here comes her daughter and she wants those same dreams.
And I think we did because she still lives on in peoples minds to this day.
It was a process of reading it, loving it, and accepting it.
It was a memorable introduction to their mother-daughter dynamic.
My mother is that strong immigrant West Indian mother who wants you to do the absolute best.
And Lauryn Hill was a baby.She was only 16!
She would sit at that piano in between takes, lunch time, and she would play and sing.
And I was just like, The Fugees?
I said, Baby, you might want to rethink that.
She was absolutely right.
She was gonna be a star with her band the Fugees, and the rest is musical history.
I dont know if I ever realized that Fugees is short for refugees.Uh-huh, thats what she told me.
Florence is very anti-singing, and then in real life youve done this iconic Broadway musical.
Was there any nervousness going into the role?No, not at all.
Did you two rehearse that scene before filming?No.
You just dove in and We shot it.
I remember the first time, Whoopi was like, Well, damn.
You know theres a thing about being ready, and I was ready for that moment.
It was a very different character, different woman, different role.
I have been very fortunate in that I have not been typecast.
I have been given roles based upon my ability to act, and that does not happen very often.
I was on a different side of the camera, so for me it wasnt that bad.
But that scene did take all day.
We were on location, and location shooting always tends to take a bit longer.
Those scenes with the different choirs took time.
The Joyful, Joyful song itself took time.
But the time it took was so worth it!
Every time I see the movie I remember how much I enjoyed making it.
Is that the scene at the end when theyre at the choir competition?
And finally Mama Florence comes around and theres this really sweet embrace?Yes.
Mama Florence was so hard on Rita.She was.
She was very hard on Rita.
And that her daughter needed something different.
When I look at the movie and Lauryn says, Mama, do you know that I can sing?
And then the mother responds, Yeah, so could your Daddy, and look what happened to him.
As if just because it happened to her father it means its gonna happen to her.
It felt like there was a lot of pain and trauma in that response from Florence.Thats right.
So we were really just working:Hit your mark, youre on camera, go.
Bill might have a different memory when it comes to me, but thats what I remember.
Was it refreshing playing a character who wasnt preoccupied with being likable?
I told you its no, and I meant no.Right or wrong, she loved her child.
She wanted to do the best for her.
A lot of people nowadays dont raise their children anymore.
They dont have anything to teach their children; they dont have anything to share with their children.
And because they dont raise their children, their kids end up telling them what theyre gonna do.
That wasnt gonna happen with Florence and Rita.
It was like, Im your mother, this is what I said.
When Rita forges her mothers signature, I was like,Ooooh, Rita.
All bets are off.
Oh my God, I would be so angry.
But Florence comes through in the end and gives Rita the approval shes been longing for.
And it just so happened that working with Lauryn for me was perfect we had absolutely great chemistry.
It was that wonderful dance across the screen.
But other than that, I did my job.
Do you keep in touch with anyone from the film?Ive spoken to people over the years.
The only person Ive spoken to more than the rest would be Whoopi, who is just great.
Ive seen Lauryn about twice and its always been a magical, wonderful reunion.
Id see Bill around L.A., and we were talking about working on another idea for a while.
I was really moved by their talent.
Even Whoopis daughter was in the movie.
Such a sweet girl.
Now shes a mother; she might even be a grandmother.
I loved meeting her.
If you ran down their names, its amazing theyve done good things with themselves for the most part.
I love that youre tapped into the memes.[Laughs.]
How can I not be?
The internet will always win.
