The new 2023 remake of White Men Can’t Jump held its global press conference this week, which included the talent and cast of the film in attendance. One cast member who was noticably absent was actor Lance Reddick, who plays Benji Allen in the film and recently passed away earlier this year from heart disease. The film pays tribute to Reddick with a credit note in the credits that reads “In memory of Lance Reddick,” and much of the cast shared their stories about them. Check out this White Men Can’t Jump 2023 press junket as the cast honors Lance Reddick.
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White Men Can’t Jump 2023 Cast Honors Lance Reddick
White Men Can’t Jump 2023 director Calmatic shared Lance Reddick‘s commitment from when he first signed onto the film. He states that Reddick did tons of research on the character and the health illnesses his character Benji had, even going above and beyond interviewing doctors and an individual who had the same condition as his character. Calmatic went on to praise Reddick’s acting abilities, saying, “It was one of those things where, as a director, I’m watching actors perform, and I’m always thinking about how can we do that differently?” What’s going on? After every take, I would go in there and I would just be like, ‘That was perfect.’ I know actors hate to hear this, but I was like, ‘Let’s do it again and let’s try something different,’ and he would do something different, but it was equally as perfect as the first one. I quickly realized he was one of the best actors I’ve ever worked with. It’s such a shame that he’s not here with us. Just his presence alone left an imprint—a great impression on us.“
The Cast of White Men Can’t Jump 2023 Shares Their Lance Reddick Stories
Teyana Taylor (Imani): I think it was the one scene for the cookout when he was in the wheelchair. He was really sweet and really kind. I just wish I would’ve had the opportunity to say more, do more, but we were all in work mode. From the little piece of him that I got to know, he was dope.
Laura Harrier (Tatiana): We kinda just all had that one day together. I wish that we had got to spend more time with him. He did, that day, share his snacks from Crafty with me, which was really sweet.
Sinqua Walls (Kamal): He was super generous. In the hospital scenes I remember, he had to eat some Jell-O or something. He was supposed to be in the chair, in his moment, going through his illness, and I think he accidentally hit the wrong Jell-O. I remember him breaking character. He was like, ‘My bad, man. Let’s just go ahead and take that back.’ It was so funny because he laughed too and went right back into character. That’s a pro right there. That’s legacy. He was really well trained and really well studied. To see him break character, laugh, and then go right back into it was just a testament to his personality.
Jack Harlow (Jeremy): I was really taken by his presence, and the energy he had playing Benji just felt so real. He just had a warmth that the character he was portraying had. He was kind as hell, that’s how I’ll remember him.