Jody, Jody, Jody. Though he had some super triflin’ ways, we couldn’t completely rule him out. Perhaps because we saw how he shut ole girl down, though she was doing her best to seduce him. Or more likely, we liked him because he reminded us of a manchild we’ve known (or still know) in our own lives. Either way, watching Jody grow up throughout the course of the movie Baby Boy, was so real and so entertaining and the very talented cast, helped to bring this already relateable story to life. You know the plot, the outcome and those memorable characters; but we bet you don’t know the behind the scenes secrets of this hood classic.
Tupac was supposed to play the role of Jody
Though anyone can see why Tupac would have been great for this role, it’s still a bit eery to think that he was supposed to portray Jody. The role was written specifically for him. But when he died in 1996, Singleton shelved the project. The role probably wouldn’t have been too much of a stretch for the rapper turned actor considering he vacillated between the sensitive, socially conscious poet to the thugged out gangster rapper. So the inclusion of Tupac’s face looming over Jody is no coincidence. In a review of the film, the New York Times pointed out just how powerful and symbolic that mural was: “His image, hovering behind Jody and Melvin, is a haunting reminder of what is at stake for Jody.”
Source: johnsingletonfilms.com
How did John Singleton pick Tyrese?
John Singleton has been known to work with musicians. Remember how fond he was of Ice Cube? (After Boyz in the Hood he wanted to cast him in Poetic Justice as the role of Lucky.) Though he was all for giving new actors a chance, Singleton had Tyrese read and audition for the role just like any other actor. Obviously, he was impressed with his work. Singleton remembered his first impression of Tyrese: “The cat was a movie star who hadn’t done a movie yet.”
Tyrese swore off Hollywood once the movie was finished
In an interview with the Breakfast Club, Charlemagne reminded Tyrese that at one point he claimed he wasn’t going to do anymore movies. Since he’s gone on to be in all of the Transformers films, that obviously wasn’t the case. Tyrese said that the process of making Baby Boy was draining.
“The thing is when I did Baby Boy I was just exhausted because I’ve never had to do anything for that long a period of time, that was so dark and emotional. I keep my energy up. You get on that movie set you gotta like crack all these jokes, get it out your system and then… I’m fighting Ving Rhames.”
Snoop was not the first choice for “Rodney”
Though I can’t imagine anyone playing Rodney any slimier than Snoop did, it was originally supposed to go to fellow rapper Ice Cube. There’s that name again. If Singleton had his way, Ice Cube would have been in every last one of his movies. But thankfully Snoop held his own. So much so that the New York Times said his performance was, “sly, menacing and disarmingly funny.” That’s about right.
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