White Chicks is a movie that has developed a large cult following over the years, even if the film itself has fallen into the category of “wouldn’t be made today.” It seems, though, that not everyone who was part of the film was that impressed with it even when it came out 20 years ago. In a recent interview with NPR, Busy Philipps shared her candid thoughts on how she was “embarrassed” by the way people reacted to White Chicks on its release – especially when it stopped her being part of a much more successful movie.
White Chicks was a financial success, with a $113 million worldwide gross, but crashed to a Tomatometer score of 15%, and an audience approval rating of 55% on Rotten Tomatoes. The creation of Marlon and Shawn Wayans, the comedy movie saw the pair playing two disgraced FBI agents who are forced to disguise themselves as the “white chicks” of the title in order to catch a kidnapper. While the Wayans had previously found success with the Scary Movie franchise, White Chicks just did not land in the same way, and Philipps doesn’t look back too fondly on being part of it. She said:
“No shade to White Chicks—although all shade to White Chicks, because at the time, when it came out, it was, like, universally panned. People hated it. It was, like, honestly embarrassing that I was in it in the industry and the world at large.”
The response to White Chicks was made worse for Philipps by the success of another movie released in the same year that she couldn’t even audition for due to filming with the Wayans. That movie? The highly praised Mean Girls. She added:
“I was jealous that I wasn’t in it! You know, to be honest, just another job I didn’t get. No. I loved the original, but I was salty that I wasn’t — that I couldn’t even audition for it because I was filming White Chicks, or I’d already gotten the part for White Chicks. The filming was overlapping.”
Will White Chicks 2 Happen?
Although there is a strong belief that White Chicks is not a movie that anyone would attempt to make today, Marlon Wayan doesn’t quite see it that way. In fact, during an interview with Variety in 2021, the actor suggested that it is imperative that White Chicks 2 happens, and that it would be a huge success if it did. He said:
“I think White Chicks 2 is necessary. I think we’ve tightened up so much that we need to loosen our ties a bit and laugh a little bit. I don’t think Hollywood understands what a juggernaut White Chicks 2 would be. And the world just keeps giving us more [ideas]. White Chicks 2 is writing itself.”
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However, there has been little sign of White Chicks 2 actually moving ahead since that interview, and based on comments like those from Philipps, it is perhaps for the best that the movie has remained a one-off. That being said, the world of streaming is always looking for its next piece of original content, and a belated, nostalgia-driven sequel to one of the most controversial comedies of its decade sounds just like the kind of thing that would find its way to the top of any streaming chart.
White Chicks
can be found streaming on Hulu.
