THE much-buzzed about new “Dreamgirls” movie is overflowing with stars – Beyoncé! Eddie Murphy! Jamie Foxx! – but the biggest one is a name you’ve likely long forgotten.
Remember that one weird “American Idol” season a few years back where people started talking about issues of racism and the curvy girl with the amazing set of pipes got booted from the show early on?
Yeah, well, she just made Beyoncé look like a pr🍷etty extr♕a.
Meet, once again won’t you, Jennifer Hudson, the chillsinspiring, coast-to-coast ovation-getting new stunner who beat out 782 other hopefuls to play sidelined star Effie White, and inspired Oprah to say that listening to her sing was like “a religious experience . . . She makes the little hairs on the back of your neck stand up.”
But even someone with the power to give Oprah religion can’t stop Hollywood from being Hollywood. In a case of life imitating art, the breakout Hudson is being pushed aside for the fabulous Ms. Beyoncé.
Although the new Diana Ross and t💦he Supremes-tinged movie is an ensemble cast, the Paramount/DreamWorks team behind the $70 million Christmas release has been pushing for Beyoncé in its Best Actress campaign in Variety trade ads, while the scene-stealing Hudson is relegated to Best Supporting Actress.
“It’s clear from the early reviews that Jennifer Hudson is the star,” says Fred Mwangaguhunga, editor of MediaTakeOut.com, an African-American gossip site. “And it’s unfortunate that the producers can’t go with that because she’s a great story.”
Jennifer Hudson is beyond a great story. She is the story. Like Effie, the character she plays in the movie who gets pushed aside for the gorgeous Deena (based, some would say, on Ross) played by Beyoncé, Hudson is the original underdog. In the movie, she is “the struggle character,” notes hollywood-elsewhere.com columnist Jeffrey Wells.
“She’s about being hurt and being pigeonholed and cast aside, partly because her character is a pain in the ass,” he says. “But also because she’s – not fat – but she’s large.”
In real life, Hudson could pen a lyric or two about being a “Survivor” herself. Booted from “American Idol” in 2004 amid controversy over the voting system, definitely a little bit too wide by Hollywood’s standards, she is a former cruise ship entertainer, for crying out loud. And now she’s on “Oprah” with Simon Cowell personally apologizing, almost begging, to boot? This kind of thing just doesn’t happen.
Oh, but it gets better.
“From what we understand, Oprah personally called Jennifer Hudson on her performance, and that same call wasn’t given to Beyoncé,” says Mwangaguhunga. “Getting a call from Oprah is to most entertainers probably more important than getting a call from the president of the United States. It’s someone letting you know that you’ve arrived.”
It gets uglier still – as MediaTakeOut also reported that Beyoncé’s father was livid about the final cut of the movie.
“Initially, the Deena part was pushed to Beyoncé because it was going to be her big acting debut,” he says. “When Matthew Knowles saw the final cut he was really upset because it was as if they brought Beyoncé in just for star power. But at that point, there wasn’t anything that could be done.
“If you look at it from Beyoncé’s standpoint,” he continues, “she’s always been the star of whatever she’s done. This is sort of a new situation, and she’s not very comfortable with that role.”
But no worries, Hollywood’s not comfortable with it either. Even though critics are saying Hudson’s performance makes Beyoncé look like just another pretty face – not at all bad, but just, you know, kind of eh – it is the flawless former Destiny’s Child singer who is still commanding the marketing and Oscar blitz limelight.
“Beyoncé is not happening,” Wells says. “Her character is barely there. She is all basically smiles. Nice singing. Beautiful. Obviously, you know, photogenic, nice stage presence, fluttering eyelashes, but there’s not anything happening of an extraordinary nature. I’m not trying to snicker and say she’s not good or anything. She’s fine. But if we’re talking superlatives, if we’re talking your end-of-the-year kind of stuff, it’s just OK.”
Then again, like the jawdropping number in the movie when Hudson belts out “And I Am Telling You I’m Not Going,” which has been inspiring standing ovations in early screenings, this too could end up being a moment of redemption for the former “Idol”-er. In a Best Actress category sure to be crowded by A-listers like Meryl Streep and Kate Winslet and Helen Mirren, throwing a newcomer like Hudson up in that competition would be akin to throwing her to the wolves.
“The art of campaigning for the Oscars is very, very complex,” notes Martin Grove, a columnist with Hollywood Reporter Online. “You don’t want to introduce to that group a complete newcomer. There’s no way to control what the Academy does, but by positioning her for Best Supporting Actress it’s very smart Oscar strategizing on the part of Paramount and DreamWorks. “She may have lost ‘American Idol,’ ” Grove adds. “But she’s definitely an American star.”