Cedric The Entertainer on show business ebbs and flows: “It’s down to one guy at a time”

Promoting his new movie, Barbershop: The Next Cut, Cedric The Entertainer fielded a question from VH1’s Sway about how comedy has evolved.

The o.g. Original Kings of Comedy alum — who’s touring now with a crew of D.L. Hughley, George Lopez, Eddie Griffin and Charlie Murphy for The Comedy Get Down — lamented at how show business doesn’t seem to have room for more than one famous black comedian today.

“It’s definitely changed,” Ced said.

“Now you have one-offs. I mean, you know, that’s the thing about the ability…used to be, you gotta think about it. There was a time when there was a lot of people famous. People had TV shows. People out there doing things. There was a multi — you had movie businesses. Martin (Lawrence) had his own movie business. Bernie Mac doing movies. You had me doing movies. You had the Wayans brothers. They all, everybody had their own space. Right? Now it’s Kevin Hart. And this ain’t got nothing to do with Kevin Hart. This is about the business. This is the business, and he makes money. He makes good movies, and he and Cube did well. They did great! And that — that set everything else back up. And that’s how the movie business works. Cube being Cube. It set everything else back up, man. It’s down to one guy at a time, man, until you’re making money. If you make a lot of money, you can be who you are. If you’re not making a lot of money, it’s one guy at a time.”

Roll the clip.

Sean L. McCarthy

Editor and publisher since 2007, when he was named New York's Funniest Reporter. Former newspaper reporter at the New York Daily News, Boston Herald and smaller dailies and community papers across America. Loves comedy so much he founded this site.

View all posts by Sean L. McCarthy →

One thought on “Cedric The Entertainer on show business ebbs and flows: “It’s down to one guy at a time”

  1. I wonder how Cedric managed to never hear of Chris Rock? Or decide that Eddie Murphy would not get movie offers if he wanted them? Or that Jerrod Carmichael and Hannibal Burress (although his failed) having tv shows not starring them, but named for them, is small change?

    Sorry you need the attention Cedric–and sorrier still that you are willing to tell racist lies to get it. How about addressing why black comics including you never pushed for stronger roles for black women comics in your vehicles? Keenan Thompson claimed black women were not funny.

    Wanda Sykes was more talented than the entire Barbershop or the entire casts of any Wayans or Lawrence film. Does Marina Franklin or Gina Yashere or any of the many black women who have done well on Last Comic Standing have a good role in Barbershop 2?

Comments are closed.