A diverse new crop of ensemble films is bringing the funny to help bolster the spring box office.
This mini-surge comes on the heels of the controversy over thelack of black dramas and performancesnominated for Academy Awards.
Ironically, the audience for black comedies has never been stronger.
Credit: Chuck Zlotnick
And comedies targeted primarily at African-American audiences mean big profits for Hollywood.
[Keanu] sheds new light on a whole variety of underrepresented people.
Despite ongoing efforts, onscreen representation of minorities hasnt improved much.
I feel likeBarbershopis just as valid as any Judd Apatow movie, says Lee.
Everyone can relate to getting gussied up.
Everybody wants to laugh, says Key, pointing to the mainstream appeal of cat caperKeanu.
A dude slipping on a banana peel is a dude slipping on a banana peel.
It doesnt matter if hes black or white.
This is not Hollywood being purely altruistic, says Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst at comScore.
If audiences bring in enough money to make these movies profitable, Hollywood will keep making more of them.
Seems like theBarbershopcrew may have the last laugh.
