The cast of ‘The Supremes at Earl’s All-You-Can-Eat’ discusses black women’s stories

When the script for “The Supremes at Earl’s All-You-Can-Eat” landed on Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor’s desk, she jumped at the chance to star in the historical drama. Although Ellis-Taylor has been in the industry for three decades, it’s rare for her to be involved in projects that pass the Bechdel test. “The Supremes,” which premiered Wednesday night at the Martha’s Vineyard African American Film Festival (MVAFF), is based on the bestselling novel by Edward Kelsey Moore. The film, directed by Tina Mabry, offered Ellis-Taylor and her co-stars Sanaa Lathan and Uzo Aduba the chance to be part of something rarely seen on screen.

“There is a lack of curiosity about black women, about the lives of black women. There is a lack of interest and care,” says Ellis-Taylor, as she speaks to diversity at the festival. “(The Supremes)” is a rebellion against that.”

Set in a small southern town, the film follows lifelong friends Odette (Ellis-Taylor), Clarice (Aduba) and Barbara Jean (Lathan) as they navigate life’s joys and sorrows, clinging to their friendship until a series of tragedies in their middle years threaten to tear them apart.

When Mabry (“Mississippi Damned”) first heard about the film, which follows the women for 30 years, she was fascinated.

“Gina Prince-Bythewood had done the first adaptation and she turned to me and said, ‘Hey, there’s a movie. You have to read the book,'” says the director. “When I read the book, I saw my family and all the women I know – my friends. It was just very familiar and authentic in a way. We don’t get a chance to show what women look like in that age group and a love story between friends. There’s a very big gap and a longing and a desire for that.”

Bringing The Supremes to the screen was no easy task, especially given the tight production schedule. “With 30 days to shoot a 121-page script, 35 actors, four time periods, and one of the top five cases contracting COVID on day two, that’s quite a hiccup in the schedule,” notes Mabry.

Still, the filmmaker was determined to create an efficient set for her cast and crew. “I’m only as good as the crew I’m working with. I hope they feel safe enough in the environment that I can give them the opportunity to be vulnerable,” she adds. “You can’t fail on my set. That’s not possible. I have three actors sitting here – how can I not let them do their work and bring it in? I will guide them, but I always want them to feel confident enough to try. You don’t get that everywhere.”

Since the story follows women between the ages of 18 and 50, the experienced actresses worked with their younger colleagues Kyanna Simone (Odette), Tati Gabrielle (Barbara Jean) and Abigail Achiri (Clarice) to ensure a coherent overall impression of the film.

“It was wonderful,” says Lathan. “It was so funny because you realize that no matter how old you are, you still feel the same age. But then we got on set – it was almost like two different movies.” The film was shot chronologically, she explained, so the younger actors did their parts first. “There’s just so much energy. They’re all so talented, they soaked up everything and were so curious, and they really appreciated our gestures, and we all analyzed the characters together. We spent time with them separately and stay in touch. To this day, it’s like we’ve made new friends.”

Allowing the characters to own their mistakes and errors added to the film’s authenticity. Aduba learned a valuable lesson in portraying Clarice, who gives up a career as a classical pianist to start a family with her unfaithful husband Richmond (Russell Hornsby).

“When you lose yourself, even if it’s just a part of you, the idea that you’re sacrificing something – and I’m not saying you have to be completely selfish about it – is devastating to yourself,” she says. “And I think that happens more often than we think. (Clarice) taught me to do the things that make you happy. We’re watching a woman who left her life behind in service to others.”

More than just a boring story about the ups and downs of life and friendship, The Supremes has the same structure and nuance that made films like Waiting to Exhale and Green Tomatoes so popular. Lathan’s Barbara Jean, for example, is a delicate woman devastated by the hardships of life. But showing her character’s gentleness with her pain was paramount.

“I just think they’re not mutually exclusive,” Lathan explains. “You can go through a lot of pain and still laugh. Black women are known for that, aren’t they? (Barbara Jean) found joy in aspects of her life, her son and her family. What I love about this script is that it’s whole people. It’s not stereotypical. She’s a wreck at times, but she’s so much more. She struggles with addiction and pain, and yet she can provide for her husband and be a good wife to him.”

Lathan continues, “It’s so funny. ‘Women of a Certain Age’ sounds like we’re 80, right? But we’re still full of energy. We’re still living and we’re still learning. We’re still having experiences and we need to reflect on that. We’re not all good. We’re not all bad. I love that.”

As beautiful as the story is, it’s still a rarity for women – especially black women – to see themselves portrayed on screen in this way, so part of Ellis-Taylor’s larger goal is to advocate for these roles and representation in an industry where black women aren’t often seen.

“It can tear you apart. It can tear you to pieces because you see what is valued and what is not. And we are not valued,” she explains, growing more passionate. “I come from the state of Mississippi, where the legislature is trying to remove figures from our history from the curriculum. I know the power of cinema and television. If that doesn’t happen in the classroom, we need to do it in other places.”

Ellis-Taylor concludes: “It’s hard to stay the course when you feel attacked by it, when you feel the lie behind it. (That’s why) I’m so grateful to Tina and Gina Prince-Bythewood. This is a rebellion against that.”