''Nobody's Fool'' is a 2018 American
romantic
Romantic may refer to:
Genres and eras
* The Romantic era, an artistic, literary, musical and intellectual movement of the 18th and 19th centuries
** Romantic music, of that era
** Romantic poetry, of that era
** Romanticism in science, of that e ...
comedy film written and directed by
Tyler Perry. It stars
Tiffany Haddish,
Tika Sumpter,
Omari Hardwick,
Mehcad Brooks,
Amber Riley
Amber Patrice Riley (born February 15, 1986), sometimes known mononymously as RILEY, is an American actress and singer. She is best known for her portrayal of Mercedes Jones on the Fox comedy-drama series ''Glee'' (2009–2015). For her perform ...
and
Whoopi Goldberg, and follows a recently paroled woman who tries to help her sister with a man who may be
catfishing her. The film marks Tyler Perry's first R-rated comedy, as well as his first film not to be distributed by
Lionsgate.
Produced by
Paramount Players (as the studio's first film),
Tyler Perry Studios
Tyler Perry Studios (TPS) is an American film production studio in Atlanta, Georgia founded by actor, filmmaker, and playwright Tyler Perry in 2006.
In 2019, Perry celebrated the grand opening of his newest Atlanta studio location; he purchased ...
, and
BET Films, ''Nobody's Fool'' was released in the United States on November 2, 2018, by
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film and television production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the main namesake division of Paramount Global (formerly ViacomCBS). It is the fifth-oldes ...
. It received negative reviews, but some praise for Haddish and Goldberg's performances. It grossed $33 million worldwide, making it one of Perry's lowest-grossing films.
Plot
Danica (
Tika Sumpter) is a successful worker at a marketing firm, and has been in a relationship with "Charlie" (
Mehcad Brooks), a man she met online a year ago but has never seen in real life.
When she is sent to go pick up her recently paroled sister Tanya (
Tiffany Haddish) from prison, her mother Lola (
Whoopi Goldberg) also tells Danica that Tanya must stay at her house. Tanya is amazed by Danica's apartment, and discovers that Danica's ex-fiancé Bailey (Adrian Conrad) left her for another woman. Tanya thinks Danica is being
catfished
Catfishing is a deceptive activity in which a person creates a fictional persona or fake identity on a social networking service, usually targeting a specific victim. The practice may be used for financial gain, to compromise a victim in som ...
since she has never seen Charlie in person.
The next day, Tanya and Danica stop by the Brown Bean, a coffee shop next to Danica's work. Frank (
Omari Hardwick), the shop’s owner, who is in love with Danica, insists that he will let Tanya work at the shop. When Danica goes to pick up Tanya from work that night she accidentally walks in an AA meeting that is being held in the store and overhears that Frank used to abuse alcohol and discovers that he was in prison for seven years. Tanya contacts the reality show ''
Catfish'' via email that Frank let her use. Danica receives news that Charlie now has Wi-Fi and is going to FaceTime her. The ''Catfish'' crew comes over to her house without her knowledge.
After Tanya finds out that "Charlie" is actually a man named Lawrence (
Chris Rock
Christopher Julius Rock (born February 7, 1965) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, and filmmaker. Known for his work in comic film, television and stage, he has received multiple accolades, including three Grammy Awards for best come ...
), Danica says negative things to Tanya which upsets Tanya so much that she decides to move out and go to their mother's house. Danica shows up to work tired and unprepared to present a campaign she had been working on and gets suspended.
Tanya, Danica, and Danica's friend Kalli (
Amber Riley
Amber Patrice Riley (born February 15, 1986), sometimes known mononymously as RILEY, is an American actress and singer. She is best known for her portrayal of Mercedes Jones on the Fox comedy-drama series ''Glee'' (2009–2015). For her perform ...
) track down Lawrence, a man with a Jheri curl who uses a wheelchair, and sets his hair on fire for lying to Danica.
The next day, Frank stops by to cheer up Danica, and they end up talking about their past relationships, only to end up having sex. Now, feeling weirded out by what just happened, Danica calls Kalli and tells her that she just slept with Frank and claims she doesn't find him attractive because of his criminal past, not knowing that he is still in her apartment. Now feeling guilty for hurting Frank's feelings, Danica realizes that she does like him and wants to give him a second chance. She apologizes at the coffee shop and then they have sex again. They begin to date afterwards.
Three months later, Danica and Kalli find out that Charlie is real and his account got hacked by Lawrence, Charlie's old college coach. Charlie shows up to Danica’s office. Frank sees Danica leaving her job with Charlie and breaks up with her. Danica goes on an awful date with Charlie and realizes he isn't the one for her after all, and goes to win Frank back. Frank is reluctant to let Danica in his house until she sings "
On Bended Knee" in the rain, something he told her he once did, and they reunite as a couple.
In an end tag, Tanya, just for the fun of it, crashes Bailey's wedding as payback for him hurting her sister.
Cast
*
Tiffany Haddish as Tanya
*
Tika Sumpter as Danica
*
Omari Hardwick as Frank Johnson
*
Whoopi Goldberg as Lola
*
Amber Riley
Amber Patrice Riley (born February 15, 1986), sometimes known mononymously as RILEY, is an American actress and singer. She is best known for her portrayal of Mercedes Jones on the Fox comedy-drama series ''Glee'' (2009–2015). For her perform ...
as Kalli
*
Mehcad Brooks as Charlie
*
Missi Pyle as Lauren Meadows
*
Chris Rock
Christopher Julius Rock (born February 7, 1965) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, and filmmaker. Known for his work in comic film, television and stage, he has received multiple accolades, including three Grammy Awards for best come ...
as Lawrence
*
Michael Blackson
Michael Blackson is a Ghanaian-Liberian actor, philanthropist, and comedian based in the United States.
Early life
Michael Blackson was born to a Ghanaian parents. He spent his young years in between Monrovia and Ghana before relocating to t ...
as Thug
*
Jon Rudnitsky as Benji
* Adrian Conrad as Bailey
*
Courtney Henggeler as Hillary
*
Nev Schulman as himself
*
Max Joseph as himself
*
PJ Morton as himself
Production
In March 2018, it was announced
Tiffany Haddish,
Tika Sumpter and
Omari Hardwick had been cast in the film, then titled ''The List'', with
Tyler Perry writing and directing, as well as serving as a producer under his
Tyler Perry Studios
Tyler Perry Studios (TPS) is an American film production studio in Atlanta, Georgia founded by actor, filmmaker, and playwright Tyler Perry in 2006.
In 2019, Perry celebrated the grand opening of his newest Atlanta studio location; he purchased ...
banner. That same month,
Whoopi Goldberg,
Amber Riley
Amber Patrice Riley (born February 15, 1986), sometimes known mononymously as RILEY, is an American actress and singer. She is best known for her portrayal of Mercedes Jones on the Fox comedy-drama series ''Glee'' (2009–2015). For her perform ...
, and
Missi Pyle also joined the cast. Later, the film was retitled ''Nobody's Fool''.
Principal photography began in April 2018, in
Atlanta, Georgia.
Release
The film was released in the United States on November 2, 2018, by
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film and television production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the main namesake division of Paramount Global (formerly ViacomCBS). It is the fifth-oldes ...
.
Box office
''Nobody's Fool'' grossed $31.7 million in the United States and Canada, and $1.8 million in other territories, for a total worldwide total of $33.5 million.
In the United States and Canada, ''Nobody's Fool'' was released alongside ''
The Nutcracker and the Four Realms
''The Nutcracker and the Four Realms'' is a 2018 American fantasy adventure film directed by Lasse Hallström and Joe Johnston based on a screenplay by Ashleigh Powell. It is a retelling of E. T. A. Hoffmann's 1816 short story "The Nutcracker and t ...
'' and ''
Bohemian Rhapsody'', and was projected to gross $12–14 million from 2,468 theaters in its opening weekend. It made $4.8 million on its first day, including $600,000 from Thursday night previews. It went on to debut to $14 million, finishing third at the box office, and ranking among the lowest opening weekends of a Perry-directed film.
The film fell 53% in its second week to $6.5 million, finishing seventh.
Critical response
On
Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of based on reviews, with an average rating of . The website's critical consensus reads, "''Nobody's Fool'' has a pair of strong leads and a smattering of scenes that highlight Tiffany Haddish's talents -- all of which only make the uninspired end results more frustrating." On
Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 39 out of 100, based on 11 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews." Audiences polled by
CinemaScore
CinemaScore is a market research firm based in Las Vegas. It surveys film audiences to rate their viewing experiences with letter grades, reports the results, and forecasts box office receipts based on the data.
Background
Ed Mintz founded Ci ...
gave the film an average grade of "A−" on an A+ to F scale, while
PostTrak reported filmgoers gave it 4 out of 5 stars.
Owen Gleiberman
Owen Gleiberman (born February 24, 1959) is an American film critic who has been chief film critic for ''Variety'' magazine since May 2016, a title he shares with . Previously, Gleiberman wrote for ''Entertainment Weekly'' from 1990 until 2014. ...
of ''
Variety'' praised the performances of Haddish and Goldberg but wrote, "...in ''Nobody's Fool'', Tiffany Haddish is just furious and funny enough to make you wish that the rest of the movie wasn't a droopy romantic comedy without the comedy."
References
External links
*
{{Tyler Perry
2018 films
2018 romantic comedy films
American romantic comedy films
Films with screenplays by Tyler Perry
Films directed by Tyler Perry
Paramount Pictures films
Paramount Players films
Films about social media
Films about the Internet
2010s English-language films
2010s American films