Friday continues to make headlines this week as yet another actor put on the map by the franchise comes forward to discuss how much he was paid for the film. Today Michael Blackson joins the likes of Faizon Love, Chris Tucker, John Witherspoon and AJ Johnson to open up about how much he was paid to be in Ice Cube’s Friday franchise. Despite the small amount, Blackson lets it be known that the movie changed his life.
In ‘Next Friday,’ Blackson made his film debut playing customer #1, who stormed into Pinky’s Record store where Day Day worked. Blackson charged the cash register and began complaining about a compact disc he was sold. The comedian demanded to speak to the manager after declaring, “I can’t get jiggy with this s**t,” referring to the CD in his hand. After unsuccessfully attempting to return the CD, Blackson storms away, bumping into Craig, who knocks him to the floor. Blackson banters with Cube for a moment before fleeing the record store delivering a few more signature lines. The hilarious scene saw all the actors at their best and helped Blackson launch an entire career from the appearance.
Blackson has used elements of customer #1 in just about everything he’s done since, making it his signature as a comedian. He’s gone on to star in other films such as Repos, Meet The Blacks and Coming 2 America where he brings the same brand of humor. On Twitter, Blackson responded to an Ice Cube post about “robbing” Friday actors letting it be known that the Cube was not to blame for how much his cast got paid. “It’s the film industry’s pay scale. I got paid $800 a day when I did Next Friday.” Michael goes on to say that while it was not a lot of money, the role helped establish him as one of the most recognizable African comics in the world.
Blackson shared his tweet on Instagram with the caption, “Just like any other job there’s entry level pay for first timers, once you make a name for yourself you can demand any amount of money that you want and if they want you they will pay. ” Michael then thanks Ice Cube for developing the Friday franchise. The comedian also stated when he begins producing movies he’ll be paying his actors in food.
With his career taking off following ‘Next Friday’ success, Michael Blackson has been committed to using his platform to create roles for other African talents. The comedian has even gone back to his home country of Ghana to create acting academies and build schools for others aspiring to be in entertainment. Blackson joins the likes of Chris Tucker, Mike Epps, Nia Long, Bernie Mac, Kat Williams, and many more who got their start on Friday.
