Usher – Interview [2005]

When New York’s hottest nightclub deejay Darrell (Usher) saves a mob boss’s life (Chazz Palminteri), he is rewarded for his bravery with the responsibility of watching over the don’s beautiful daughter Dolly (Emmanuelle Chriqui). The sparks soon begin to fly between this attractive couple from very different worlds, against her formidable father’s wishes.
Meanwhile, the don has other things on his mind-quashing a potential war with an arch-rival and controlling a young, ruthless challenger to his throne. In the end, all’s fair in love and gangster warfare in this hip, romantic comedy, IN THE MIX. Directed by Ron Underwood and produced by John Dellaverson, the film’s executive producers include Usher, Bill Borden, and Holly Davis Carter and Michael Paseornek.

IN THE MIX is a love story between two people from different neighborhoods. The romantic-comedy offers a contemporary spin on the classic ‘Romeo and Juliet’ theme, two lovers from opposite sides of the track. At its heart the movie shows how the communities-one black and one Italian–come together and are, in fact, actually the same.

Producer John Dellaverson saw many elements in the story that he could relate to. When his daughter, Cara Dellaverson, came onboard to write further elements of the screenplay, he found himself much more personally and emotionally invested. Cara used her own experiences with her father as the basis for the dynamics between ‘Dolly’, played by Emmanuelle Chriqui, and her loving yet over-protective father, Mafia Don ‘Frank Pacelli’, played by Chazz Palminteri.

Dellaverson also knew that both Italian-American and African-American communities have similarities as well – such as the importance of family – which he wanted to explore. So he took it to his old friend Bill Borden, whom he first met while working together on “La Bamba” (1987). Borden, who immediately connected to the material, said, “When I read it, the family that’s portrayed by Frank Paceli is a Mafia family. My Italian family is not a Mafia family but when I was growing up, my uncles worked with Sinatra and my grandfather worked in the studios. So, that Italian family quality is one that I am close to.”

“We have two different societies- the urban world that lives in Brooklyn and the Mafia world which lives in a different part of Brooklyn-running head-on into each other over these two kids,” continues Borden. “In our picture, the humor and the drama come from the mixing of these two worlds.”

Dellaverson knew he wanted somebody special to play the character of ‘Darrell Williams,’ the young DJ that steals Dolly’s heart. He was ecstatic when superstar Usher agreed to come onboard for his first starring role. Says the producer enthusiastically, “We all know Usher for his music career, of course. But it really is amazing that his instincts and his strong sense of perfection and professionalism make him achieve what he does in this film. It’s important to Usher to be honest and truthful in everything he does, and I really believe both him and his character.” Borden agrees, “The audience is going to find a new American movie star. Usher is a phenomenal singer and, as they will see, he’s an amazing actor.”

“Darrell is a very mild-mannered individual,” says Usher. “The man dreams to be a successful producer and run a label. He’s a guy who is striving for family at all times, striving to receive love from those around him whom he cares about.” Chriqui says of her co-star, “he brings so much heart to Darrell. He has the right amount of innocence and sex appeal.”