Mo’Nique Fires Back At Lee Daniels: ‘Mad I Didn’t Thank Him At The Oscars’

Since Precious star Mo’Nique wrote an open letter addressing Lee Daniels’ thoughts on her being blackballed from roles that would further her career, it has been an on going he said she said between the director and the actress.

Lee Daniels likes to take care of his performers. Many of them have turned up in several of his projects, but Mo’Nique is a rare performer that hasn’t found herself on his set again after she won the Academy Award for his film Precious.

In her piece for the Hollywood Reporter, Mo’Nique writes, “But I got a phone call from Lee Daniels… And he said to me, ‘Mo’Nique, you’ve been blackballed.’ I said, ‘Why?’ And he said, ‘Because you didn’t play the game.'” When Mo’Nique asked what game, there was silence on the other end of the phone. Some have said the game refers to the fact that Mo’Nique never campaigned for her Oscar win.

Daniels released a statement after her piece went viral.

“Mo’Nique is a creative force to be reckoned with. Her demands through Precious were not always in line with the campaign. This soured her relationship with the Hollywood community. I consider her a friend. I have and will always think of her for parts that we can collaborate on, however the consensus among the creative teams and powers thus far were to go another way with these roles.”

Now Mo’Nique claims that Lee Daniels was mad she didn’t thank him during her Oscar speech. During an interview with Good Morning America she added more thoughts on being blackballed by Hollywood.

“People were saying, ‘Someone needs to teach Mo’Nique a lesson because she’s not playing the game, and she’s gonna get in her own way of winning this award, because it seems like she’s choosing her family over Hollywood.’ I don’t think Hollywood has turned its nose up to me.”

She continued to explain that Daniels was perpetuating his own personal feelings and directing them at Mo’Nique because she didn’t thank him when she won the Academy Award for Precious.

“I think that those are feelings that Mr. Daniels is having. You know, there were things that Mo’Nique – she didn’t thank the producers, and she didn’t thank the studio, and that’s just not things that you do.’ Well, it had nothing to do with the producers, nor the studio. Mr. Daniels had a problem that I didn’t say his name the night of the Oscar awards.”

What do you think of this whole situation? Do you think Mo’Nique was blackballed by Hollywood?

[Image by Lionsgate]