Brandon Hammond Reunites With Vivica Fox For ‘Soul Food’ Event

Actor Brandon Hammond is working to maintain the legacy of the cult traditional movie “Soul Meals” alive by a latest Sunday dinner occasion and an upcoming documentary celebrating the movie’s thirtieth anniversary.

On Nov. 23, Hammond — finest often called Ahmad within the 1997 movie — reunited with Vivica A. Fox (Maxine) and Morgan Méchelle Smith (Kelly) for a particular “Soul Meals Sunday Dinner” occasion. In partnership with Cult Classics, 1010 Wine & Occasions, and R.C. Bonds PR, the night featured a screening of “Soul Meals” on the historic Miracle Theater, an intimate Q&A with Hammond and Fox, and a soulful Sunday dinner hosted by 1010 Wine & Occasions.

Created to honor one in every of Black cinema’s most beloved movies and seize the household heat of the vacations, the occasion aimed to revive the custom of Sunday Dinner and introduce the legacy Of “Soul Meals” to a brand new era. For Hammond, the occasion supplied an opportunity to reunite together with his onscreen “mother,” whom he nonetheless speaks with often as they collaborate on the upcoming Soul Meals documentary.

“It was superb. You recognize, it’s humorous as a result of I discuss to Vivica fairly often,” Hammond instructed BLACK ENTERPRISE. “So it’s at all times good to get collectively along with her. Despite the fact that we discuss, at the least, you realize, in all probability each different week, particularly now that she’s an government producer of the Soul Meals reunion doc. So we had been even conversing lots on enterprise.”

“However that’s mother, you realize, I’ve recognized her most of my life,” he added with a smile.

The documentary has been two years within the making, Hammond shared. With preliminary plans of merely internet hosting a reunion occasion for the movie’s twenty fifth anniversary in 2022, Hammond spoke together with his enterprise companion, Genesis Scott, who helped spark the concept for a reunion documentary that catches up with the whole solid to debate the impression of the movie and its continued prominence inside the Black neighborhood.

“That is like my love letter to a film that has meant a lot to me each personally and professionally,” Hammond mentioned, after making nods to the accolades that got here after his standout function within the movie.

Hammond says that whereas followers have loved reunions of beloved ’90s exhibits like “The Contemporary Prince of Bel-Air,” “Martin,” and “Mates,” cult-favorite movies hardly ever get the identical highlight. He believes Soul Meals is the proper film to carry folks again collectively — a narrative that resonated deeply with its solid, crew, and audiences who noticed their very own households mirrored on display.

“Soul Meals can also be proper together with these different initiatives on like legacy IP. And we must always rejoice this movie,” Hammond declared.

He credit Fox for being the primary to champion the undertaking, offering early funding that allowed him to movie an interview with Irma P. Corridor, the legendary Huge Mama. Since then, solid members together with Nia Lengthy, Vanessa Williams, Mekhi Phifer, Michael Seaside, and others have joined in. After Corridor’s interview, Hammond says the assist unfold “like a domino impact.”

“Your entire solid agreed to be in it. All people, you realize, Michael, Vanessa, Mekhi, Nia, after all, Viv,” Hammond shared.

The problem, he says, is coordinating the packed schedules of so many high-profile solid members and getting them collectively in a single place.

“They’re so iconic and busy they usually’re at all times working. So it’s been a bit bit attempting to coordinate that,” Hammond mentioned.

The documentary additionally holds private significance for Hammond, who plans to share his personal story by the movie, together with why he stepped away from performing after his breakout function in Soul Meals.

“The documentary isn’t solely a reunion, however I’m additionally going to be going into my very own private journey, as a result of so many individuals had questions as to why I finished performing,” he shared. “And for therefore lengthy, I didn’t actually give solutions to that query. However within the documentary, we actually go into it. We actually go into my journey personally as properly. And we join how the ‘Soul Meals’ movie and my ‘Soul Meals’ household have helped me to get to this place of form of taking my energy again, if you’ll, and telling my story.”

Because the movie’s thirtieth anniversary nears, Hammond is pushing to finish the documentary in time for followers to get pleasure from. Nonetheless, with the present financial challenges impacting the leisure business, he notes that further funding remains to be wanted to carry the undertaking throughout the end line.

“We’re about 30%, 40% by the movie. However we’re on the lookout for assist, like buyers, followers,” Hammond mentioned. And you realize, we financially, you realize, to complete the movie, to finish it, and to get it out by 2027 to coincide with the thirtieth anniversary. Look, we want that fan assist. Individuals, I do know they need it. However you realize, this business is in a bizarre place proper now. So it’s been a bit tough to get it to the end line, however I do know we are going to. So please, simply anyone on the market wanting to assist, please attain out to me and anyone linked to [the film].”

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