Morris Chestnut is feeling “blessed.” The actor is returning to one of his most iconic characters from the hit ’90s film “The Best Man.”
The sequel series, “The Best Man: The Final Chapters,” premieres later this month on Peacock, and theGrio caught up with Chestnut to break down the unique “blessing” of revisiting the same character for over 20 years, the special bond the cast has formed with each other and more.
As theGrio previously reported, Chestnut is reuniting with the original cast of “The Best Man” for this new series, which includes: Taye Diggs, Nia Long, Melissa De Sousa, Regina Hall, Terrence Howard, Sanaa Lathan and Harold Perrineau. The new series sees the friend group come together once again years after the events of the 2013 film, “The Best Man Holiday.”
Speaking to this special homecoming with his castmates, Chestnut told us, “Some of us see each other on different projects or maybe different situations throughout the years but never all of us together at the same time, on the same set. It is somewhat of a family reunion.”
The story itself, Chestnut explained, is still just an “amazing opportunity,” even all of these years later.
“When you start out acting, you just hope to do a project that people will see,” he explained. “But now you’re part of a project that you’ve done now for the third time in the span of 20-plus years … that really never happens.” He continued, “This is not like a friends reunion on-screen, this is a progressive story throughout 20-plus years, and that is just a blessing to be a part of.”
“Our lives mirror the characters,” he added. “We’ve all progressed as our characters have progressed, and we’ve built up life experiences over the long period of time … we have 20 years of experiences from the very first one to put into our performances for this TV show.”
The show also comes at a time when much of the audience, and the world, have dealt with massive introspection due to the isolation the COVID-19 pandemic caused. Being able to watch these characters, who many have grown up with also go through the highs and lows of life, Chestnut explained, makes the experience even more special.
“People see themselves, their friends, their closest family members in all of these characters,” he said. “Whether it be the situation, whether it be the moral dilemma, the ethical dilemma, [or] the emotional situation that they’re going through.”
“The Best Man: The Final Chapters” begins streaming Dec. 22 on Peacock.
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