FIVE MINUTES WITH ... Taraji P. Henson
The 43-year-old Oscar nominee stars in ‘From the Rough,’ opening in Chicago this weekend
In almost two decades of acting, Taraji P. Henson has racked up innumerable accolades and awards — including an Oscar nod for her supporting role in “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” — and starred alongside greats like Terrence Howard and Steve Carell. Now, she takes the lead as Catana Starks, the first African-American woman to coach a men’s collegiate golf team, in “From the Rough.”
Road to Hollywood “I studied acting at Howard College, and when I saw my peers graduating and appearing on the big screen, I thought, ‘I can make money doing this?!’ I booked a little role on ‘Smart Guy’ and the producer liked my work and cast me on ‘Sister, Sister.’ ‘Baby Boy’ was my first big role — [that’s when] I was able to quit my job and act full-time.”
Role call
“[‘From the Rough’] is really true to my heart. Tennessee State University decided they wanted to have a golf team, but no one was stepping up to coach. [Catana Starks] decided she wanted to be the coach and everyone laughed at her. She had to go out of the country to recruit. What’s so interesting is that the guys she recruited were outcasts in their respective countries: Tom Felton’s [character] was the street kid in London; the Australian guy was dirt poor and just so happy to be in college. They weren’t AfricanAmerican, but they understood the struggle. We don’t hit you over the head with the message [of equality in the film], but you’ll get it.”
Mom’s the word “[Being a mom is] particularly challenging in this excessive, media-driven world we live in. I don’t know who my son [Marcel, 20] is talking to, because no one calls the house anymore, they call his cell phone! You have to be a big part of their life and that’s hard with what I do, but I’m a mother first. I’m a mother who happens to be an actress, that’s what I’ve always said. If I had to walk away from [acting] for my son, I would.”
On the horizon “I just finished an incredible pilot for FOX called ‘Empire’ — it’s ‘The Sopranos’ meets R&B and hip-hop — and it’s going to change the face of primetime television. Shows today, sure they’ll leave you with a good cliffhanger, but you always know the character is coming back — you can count on that — but that’s not always true to life. Sometimes the good guy does [have bad things happen].” “From the Rough” hits theaters April 25.