Yahoo News ‘American Fiction’ Producer Ben LeClair Thanked Star Jeffrey Wright for Getting the Film Made: “Jeffrey Took a Chance on This Movie”
Before American Fiction producer Ben LeClair ends his interview, he wants to apologize for overusing the word “crazy.” But, in this case, the adjective does not feel like filler in describing Cord Jefferson’s feature film debut based on Percival Everett’s 2001 novel Erasure. When the comedic drama about a frustrated author (Jeffrey Wright), who writes what he considers to be a satire of stereotypical Black books only to have a runaway hit on his hands, premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2023, it won the People’s Choice Award. The accolades have continued to roll in, culminating in five Academy Award nominations, among them best picture, best actor and best adapted screenplay.
“Crazy is an apt word for what the last three months have been like,” adds LeClair. “Especially when working in smaller budget filmmaking, you hope the movie is seen and has a life, but to connect on this level, across the country, and make this sort of potentially lasting statement, it’s why we do it. And it’s been an honor to be a part of this one.”
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Speaking to THR, LeClair recalls bringing American Fiction to the screen, in the process opening everyone in its path up to some profound conversations.
How did American Fiction come to you?
This one started the old-fashioned way. Cord’s agent sends the script to T-Street, and we read it right away; we loved it. We met him soon after that and hit it off. We shared the script with our friends at MRC and collectively made a decision to make the movie based on the script alone.
When you read the script for the first time, what struck you about it?
Originality. That’s the main thing. If we desire anything at T-Street, it’s always originality first. The script was originally called “Fuck.”
Was it really?
Yeah. On the cover page it said “‘Fuck; by Cord Jefferson.” So right out of the gate, we were like, “Yes.” And then, when you find the reveal in the middle of the movie, why the script is titled that, we loved it even more. Cord Jefferson is an amazing guy. This business is all about people, and when we met him, we knew that we had an amazing creative leader.
My understanding is that Cord at that point had written for TV but not directed.
This was a complete feature film debut from beginning to end. One thing about Cord that is really unique is that he has this radical honesty approach to communication and working with others, where he never would try to fake knowing something that he doesn’t know. That really disarms people and brings them in, and that is ultimately the key job of a director, to communicate with team and make them rally around you. Cord is excellent at this, so his openness to the collaborative process was the big key to our success.
Did you look at his TV work and think, “He’s got this”?
There was no prior work to look at that would inform how someone is going to perform in a feature film production setting. It really is a sense of who they are as a person, and what their approach to problem solving is, and their ability to work with a group, and give feedback, take feedback; soft skills of human beings that are often under-appreciated and underrated.
The book was published 23 years ago. How much updating did the story need?
It was more about harnessing the essence of the book. Cord’s great achievement in the adaptation is distilling some thorny topics and delivering them in a way that feel absolutely relatable and universal. And that’s another gift of his, as a writer and as a screenwriter, that he was able to take something that doesn’t have a clear trajectory to mainstream storytelling and turn it into American Fiction.
How did Jeffrey Wright come to this project?
When Cord read the book, he read it in Jeffrey’s voice. So, when we first met him, he told us, “It’s Jeffrey Wright, that’s who I want to go to.” He was the first one we sent the script to. And Jeffrey signed up.
Did Jeffrey express his reaction to the script?
He loved the script, but had questions for Cord, obviously, about his intent. Was this a story that was going to be policing Black culture or was it something else? He and Cord were on the same page from the first meeting, and from there, it was a question of schedule and process.
What did Jeffrey add to the character?
Jeffrey is one of our best living actors, full stop. And he hasn’t done many roles in his career that are as aligned with his own worldview, and so it was a really interesting opportunity for him to bring his three decades of experience into one role that, really, it’s hard to see another actor playing. He elevated the material on all fronts and brought an amazing cast to the project and elevated their performances as well.
Was this a collaborative film?
Oh, absolutely. Look, the day the nominations came out, I called Jeffrey to congratulate him, but also to thank him. Whenever you’re working in a lower budget tier, it always takes a [big] name actor to, if not get the movie made, get the movie seen. It takes someone to take a chance; and Jeffrey took a chance on this movie. He took a chance on Cord.
I sat in the theater and could hear the giggling in the dark, while also feeling like one had to acknowledge the stereotypes that we as a culture perpetuate and our unconscious bias. Do you have a take on this kind of collective experience?
We hope it generates a conversation, but we don’t have a lot to say about that conversation. We want that conversation to be theirs, not ours. Most of the ideas in the movie, the reason they connected so much with Cord when he read the book, is because he had experienced a lot of those things in his own life. We talked about all these things before we started shooting; but once you get into production, that stuff falls away and you focus on what’s in front of you. Our job as producers is to execute the filmmaker’s vision while also ensuring the wellbeing of the crew. So, we were very conscious of some of the cultural comments being made, but at the same time, focused on making a movie.
Did you know you had something special on your hands while you were making it?
We had a Boston crew screening, and when Jeffrey made opening remarks he told the crew that, “I knew that we had something because you told me.” What he meant was that their reaction to the making of the movie and the performances of the actors, people were paying attention; they weren’t scrolling on their phones. They sensed that we were doing something different. Whenever that happens, you feel positive about it. At the same time, there was uncertainty, as there is in every movie. Especially with this one, because of all the tonal undulations. We have high highs and low lows. Is this all going to work? That definitely is something we faced on a daily basis, and a lot of credit needs to go to our collaborators in the post-process. Our editor, Hilda Rasula, was incredible. And, later in the process, our composer, Laura Karpman. Hilda created a really special vibe in the room for exploration and collaboration. And ultimately, with Laura’s score, we were able to bring out one identity for the movie and make it feel like one story.
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