It’s not easy to make it in Hollywood, and it’s not every day someone from right here in South Florida gets to be part of one of the biggest movies of the year. Deco sat down with the North Miami actor who got his big break in “Queen & Slim.”
Jodie Turner-Smith (as Queen): “Thank you for bringing us this far. Thank you for this journey.”
It’s one of the most critically acclaimed movies of the year — with a powerful message and an all-star cast.
Daniel Kaluuya (as Slim): “As long as my lady remembers me fondly, it’s all I need.”
But what you might not know about “Queen & Slim” is that one of its stars is from right here in SoFlo.
Bertrand Boyd: “I’m an introvert, so it’s the weirdest thing, is how I manage to involve myself in all the things that involve people and audiences and things like that.”
Bertrand Boyd grew up in North Miami, but before he got into acting, he was performing poetry and spoken word all over the world.
Bertrand Boyd: “I started filling those pages up, getting more journals and really, really getting into the writing.”
It was just a hobby at first, but Bertrand says everything changed after he got on stage for the first time.
Bertrand Boyd: “I went from wanting to be an athlete to wanting to be involved more in the arts, so I was just hooked.”
Fast forward a couple years later, and Bertrand is starring in his first feature film — and it happens to be one of the most talked-about movies of the year.
Here he is on set of “Queen & Slim” with Daniel Kaluuya and Jodie Turner-Smith.
Bertrand Boyd: “Whether they knew it or not, I knew I was nervous. I spoke to myself every day in the mirror like, ‘You can do this. You’re all right. Don’t be scared. Don’t be nervous. You got this.'”
And that seems to have worked out pretty well for him, because…
Bertrand Boyd: “I didn’t get one of my scenes cut, so I was happy about that. So I watched the whole thing, and I’m like, ‘You didn’t cut none of my scenes.’ I’m like, ‘This is great.'”
Bertrand also tells Deco he not only learned a lot from Daniel Kaluuya, but also had a lot of fun working with him.
Bertrand Boyd: “Daniel and I, I think we clowned a lot on set, like, after the camera was off, you know, we talked trash back and forth.”
“Queen & Slim” has been huge for Bertrand, so we couldn’t help putting him on the spot by asking him to name his favorite movie of the year — besides his own.
Bertrand Boyd: “Only thing that keeps playing in my head is ‘Queen & Slim.’ That’s the only movie that keeps playing in my head, ‘Queen & Slim.’ Uhh, I can’t say ‘Queen & Slim?’ I gotta say ‘Queen.’ I haven’t seen anything better than ‘Queen & Slim’ this year.”
“Queen & Slim” is still showing at some South Florida theaters.
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