When Halle Berry starred in Catwoman in 2004, the reaction, both from the public and from critics, was far from what she expected. In addition to getting a critic score of only 8% on Rotten Tomatoes, the movie was quite a box office flop. But, with the movie celebrating its 20th anniversary this year, Berry got candid about the backlash, and why some of it still lingers to this day.
“I didn’t love [the backlash],” Berry told Entertainment Weekly. “Being a Black woman, I’m used to carrying negativity on my back, fighting, being a fish swimming upstream by myself. I’m used to defying stereotypes and making a way out of no way.”
Among her swimming-upstream moments, Berry famously accepted a Razzie for Worst Actress. “I didn’t want to be casual about it, but I went and collected that Razzie, laughed at myself, and kept it moving,” Berry reflected. “It didn’t derail me because I’ve fought as a Black woman my whole life. A little bad publicity about a movie? I didn’t love it, but it wasn’t going to stop my world or derail me from doing what I love to do.”
Despite trying to be a good sport with all the hate, and even getting in on the joke during the Razzies, Berry still feels the sting of the failure to this day.
“Growing up as a Black woman, that’s two strikes against you,” she said. “There’s an innate resilience. I hated that it got all put on me, and I hate that, to this day, it’s my failure. I know I can carry it. I still have a career 20 years later. It’s just part of my story. That’s okay, and I’ve carried other failures and successes.”
“People have opinions, and sometimes they’re louder than others,” she added. “You just have to keep moving.”
Per Berry, a lot of the movie’s unsuccessful box office numbers were due to some harsh critics who, at the time, were as influential as ever.
“Critics have so much power,” the Oscar-winner said. “When a movie comes out, if critics say it’s not worth watching and smash it, people listen. Critics aren’t talking about it now, and people have the freedom to discover it on their own without a reminder of what critics said about it. Younger generations don’t know what was said back then. They discover it on their own and enjoy its merits without being mind-led to think a certain way.”
In fact, according to EW, Catwoman’s newest generation of viewers has shown much more love for the action movie. On Amazon Prime, where it’s currently available to stream, the movie has a total rating of 4.4/5. A long way from that 8%, huh?
Looking back now, it seems Berry’s thankful for the movie, despite the ups and downs. Most of all, she’s glad to be a part of the conversation that introduced badass female heroes to the big screen.
“While it didn’t happen at the time for Catwoman, I was so thrilled it happened for Wonder Woman and Gal Gadot because the goal was to move women into that space,” she reflected. “I don’t know if it had an impact, but I believe it was important to try, and it was important to make the movie and push boundaries.”
“Even if it failed and didn’t turn out the way we hoped, we must continue to take chances,” she so poignantly said. “We have to try.”
Before you go, click here to see actresses who have stepped behind the camera to direct.
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