In a nine-minute video posted to social media, Ice Cube has responded to Katt Williams’ viral Club Shay Shay YouTube show interview, in which he attacked Kevin Hart, Cedric the Entertainer, and discussed a potential bathroom rape scene in the Ice Cube film, Friday After Next, among other topics.
Hart has already responded, calling the Williams comments “sad,” but using the moment to tout his upcoming Netflix film.
Ice Cube, whose film Friday After Next had Williams in it, today tried to address the Club Shay Shay comments.
“It’s been over 20 years since the movie came out, and people have different perspectives,” Ice Cube began in the video about Friday After Next.
Ice Cube went on to say that he wanted to clarify a few things. Chief among them was that he would film a rape scene after Williams said that he had pushed for the removal of a sexual assault clip. The scene features Williams’ character, Money Mike, cornered in a bathroom by Terry Crews’ character, Damon.
Williams claimed “Money Mike, in the original script, got raped in the bathroom,” and that he ultimately advocated for the scene to be cut.
Ice Cube took exception to that.
“I would never shoot a rape scene in a movie, especially Friday, where you actually see this happening on camera. That ain’t my style.”
He added, “The plier joke was always in the script. We would never, ever show that. That’s not my style if you look at any of my movies. So, that was never a discussion.”
Ice Cube added that there was a “discrepancy” in how he and Williams remembered how it went down. “At that point in everybody’s career, we will listen to a certain extent, but we wasn’t gonna change the movie for it. For any actor, you know?” he said. “We do what we feel and if it was a rape scene, it would have been in the movie. There was no reason not to shoot it. But that’s not my style.”
Addressing another claim by Williams, who said he wrote his part for Money Mike, Ice Cube clarified the situation.
“The role was written, but he enhanced it. Which is why Katt was so dope in the movie. Money Mike had a small role, about as big as the Santa Clause role, but when we started the filming , he was giving much magic, that we kept expanding the role, and giving him more to do because he was on point.”
As for compensation, Ice Cube said, “If any actor is mad about what they got paid, then look at what you were doing, look at where your career was at the time, and where it is now, and I believe Friday has something to do with that.”
He added, “I put a lot of people in movies, but they ain’t never put me in a movie. You can take that for what it’s worth. I gave these guys a lot of opportunities, and I still act, so I’m waiting for a call, I ain’t got to produce or write everything.”
However, Ice Cube ended the video saying he has love for all the comedians he worked with.