{"id":1254965,"date":"2025-03-29T02:23:38","date_gmt":"2025-03-29T02:23:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/pt\/?p=1254965"},"modified":"2025-03-29T02:23:38","modified_gmt":"2025-03-29T02:23:38","slug":"number-one-on-the-call-sheet-review-the-doc-misses-the-mark","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/pt\/number-one-on-the-call-sheet-review-the-doc-misses-the-mark\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Number One On The Call Sheet\u2019 Review: The Doc Misses The Mark"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/figure>\n<\/p>\n
\n
\n

In the past decade or so, there have been a handful of documentary iterations that have retraced the rich history of Black Hollywood back and forth and back again. <\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Whether celebratory or educational, our appetite for these cultural explorations seems insatiable. That\u2019s, in large part, because the enduring impact of Black creativity in entertainment can never be overstated (at least for those who truly appreciate it). So we eagerly devour these expansive, often sprawling offerings, even when they feel familiar.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Films like Elvis Mitchell\u2019s 2022 documentary \u201cIs That Black Enough for You?!?\u201d meticulously recalled the evolution \u2014 and revolution \u2014 of Black cinema\u2019s landmark eras, while 2024\u2019s \u201cHollywood Black\u201d looked back at the struggles and triumphs of Black film pioneers, both in front of and behind the camera. And let\u2019s not forget 2020\u2019s \u201cThey\u2019ve Gotta Have Us\u201d docuseries, which reexamined a similar cinema legacy with insight from some of our biggest film stars, though with a more scattered focus.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

The latter may be what prompted Apple TV+ to rehash the subject once more in \u201cNumber One on the Call Sheet,\u201d a two-part documentary exploring the trailblazing roles of leading Black actors and actresses. It premiered on the streamer on Friday.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

That, or simply knowing that assembling a roster of over two dozen Black A-listers to relish in their screen careers would generate enough buzz to breathe new life into a well-worn topic, especially when it\u2019s backed by several industry giants. Co-producers for \u201cBlack Leading Men in Hollywood\u201d are Jamie Foxx and Kevin Hart, while executive producers for \u201cBlack Leading Women in Hollywood\u201d include Angela Bassett, Whoopi Goldberg, Viola Davis and Halle Berry. All of them also contribute interviews. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\"The<\/div>\n
The documentary touts a star-studded lineup of Black A-listers relishing in their screen careers, also offering insight into their uphill journeys in the film world.<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n
\n

Judging by the excitement sparked by the mere <\/span>announcement of the documentary\u2019s star-studded lineup<\/span><\/a> before the trailer even dropped, the streamer was spot on. That energy only grew during the double feature\u2019s glittering Hollywood premiere earlier this month. <\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Beyond the optics, though, \u201cNumber One on the Call Sheet\u201d <\/span>does<\/span><\/em> venture to say something compelling about the progress of Black Hollywood through its many eras, and it does cover many \u2014 the Blaxploitation era, the robust golden age of Black \u201990s movies, the 2000s run of Black rom-coms, the modern Black superhero takeover. The films, directed by Reginald Hudlin and Shola Lynch, go deep on the groundbreaking figures and moments that propelled Black prominence in film forward, even while facing racial setbacks. <\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

However, \u201cNumber One on the Call Sheet\u201d shines brightest when it moves beyond its nostalgic tour of Black excellence in Hollywood and shifts to a more critical reflection of the industry\u2019s ongoing issues. It\u2019s rare to hear Black A-listers of this caliber come together to share their collective history-making testimonies. Still, even rarer is the opportunity to listen to their candid insights about the unique pressures and responsibilities of being part of such an elite group of film stars.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

That said, the two-part documentary ultimately takes the form you\u2019d expect: a celebration of the innovators, a highlight reel of grand achievements, and a reflection on how far Black Hollywood has come while leaving room to briefly question its future. <\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

This approach would\u2019ve been perfectly fine if \u201cNumber One on the Call Sheet\u201d were maybe called something else. The phrase has historically referred to \u201cmovie stars at the top of the food chain in Hollywood\u201d who have achieved both artistic and financial success, according to director Hudlin. <\/span>However, I can\u2019t help but wonder how the dual documentaries may have shifted their focus if they had taken more cues from their title \u2014 which is a subject not nearly explored enough in a tight format like this, especially in conversation with Black actors.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\"Alfre<\/div>\n
Alfre Woodard is interviewed about how the phrase “number one on the call sheet” has not always been used to describe Black actresses.<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n
\n

That\u2019s probably because Black actors and actresses don\u2019t always come to mind first when the phrase \u201cnumber one on the call sheet\u201d is mentioned \u2014 except for a few select icons.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

\u201cA whole lot of the dominant culture arrives as No. 1 on the call sheet,\u201d Alfre Woodard points out in Part 2. \u201cBut we [Black women] seldom do.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Similar statements are scattered throughout both films but rarely expounded upon. It\u2019s as if we\u2019re hearing bits and pieces of a larger conversation that never fully materializes.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

To be fair, Part 1 of \u201cNumber One on the Call Sheet\u201d tackles this idea early on by asking some of its featured male actors \u2014 which range from Denzel Washington, Will Smith and Morgan Freeman to Michael B. Jordan, Daniel Kaluuya and Dwayne \u201cThe Rock\u201d Johnson \u2014 to loosely define the phrase.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\"The<\/div>\n
The meaning behind the Hollywood phrase is briefly explored in Reginald Hudlin’s “Number One on the Call Sheet: Black Leading Men in Hollywood” documentary.<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n
\n

Most attach an accomplished feeling to the expression because, to them, it signifies more than just seeing their name at the top of a movie call sheet \u2014 more than just being called \u201cnumber one.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a magic moment for most actors,\u201d Idris Elba explains in the film. Meanwhile, Ice Cube likened the accomplishment to \u201chitting the lottery.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Others, like Washington, are less moved by the vanity of the title compared to realities actors face, like pay inequity \u2014 which continues to be an issue, even at the industry\u2019s mountaintop. Taraji P. Henson (who\u2019s also featured in the doc) <\/span>tearfully pointed this out<\/span><\/a> during \u201cThe Color Purple\u201d musical press run in 2023.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

\u201cI wasn\u2019t number one on the payroll,\u201d Washington told Hudlin in the doc, referring to his top-billed role in 1981\u2019s \u201cCarbon Copy,\u201d which was also his feature debut, \u201cso being number one on the call sheet didn\u2019t mean [much].\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Still, even for those who don\u2019t fully embrace the label, it\u2019s clear it still signifies something extraordinary in any actor\u2019s career.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

\u201cIt means you made it,\u201d Foxx concludes in the film.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

But what does \u201cmaking it\u201d as a Black actor mean beyond a personal achievement?<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\""Number<\/div>\n
“Number One on the Call Sheet” takes viewers through a timeline of Black achievements in film via the careers of our leading Black movie stars.<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n
\n

\u201cNumber One on the Call Sheet\u201d seeks this answer by looking at the careers of its subjects, mainly pointing out the success stories that influenced the next generation of Black talent. <\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

It nods to legends like Sidney Poitier and Harry Belafonte, who used their star power to champion racial justice and establish a precedent for future Black artists. The documentary also honors Oscar winners Hattie McDaniel and Halle Berry, each of who made history with their groundbreaking Academy Award wins, thus changing the landscape for Black actresses (though that\u2019s debatable). <\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Eddie Murphy gets props as well for redefining Black movie stardom during his \u201980s and \u201990s blockbuster reign, a path Will Smith eagerly followed as he built his own legacy with global domination in mind. Even Goldberg is credited for her groundbreaking 1984 one-woman show (\u201cThe Spook Show\u201d), which taught Black actresses that they didn\u2019t have to wait for Hollywood to offer them roles \u2014 they could create their own.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

The documentary is rich with these historical threads and mentions of more impactful actors like Viola Davis, Chadwick Boseman, Nia Long, Taye Diggs, Vivica A. Fox and Marlon Wayans. In a lot of ways, I appreciate the chronological structure, using Black leads as markers of progress, reminding us that the efforts of early Black performers were not in vain \u2014 even as our current administration <\/span>declares war on diversity, equity and inclusion<\/span><\/a>, with Hollywood <\/span>buckling under political pressure<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

But again, many of these notable highlights have little to do with being \u201cnumber one\u201d in Hollywood and more to do with just being Black in the film space \u2014 a space that was never designed for Black talent to truly thrive anyway, top of the food chain be damned. <\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

That <\/span>theme could have been more apparent if \u201cNumber One on the Call Sheet\u201d had spent less time being a visual history book for Black cinema and more time unpacking the obstacles still faced by Black leads at the pinnacle of their careers \u2014 not to say those issues go entirely ignored in the doc. <\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a whole different set of circumstances when it comes to white actors and actresses and what they deal with,\u201d Foxx acknowledges in Part 1. \u201cWith us, since it\u2019s not that many [stars], this business can overcomplicate it.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

There is one sobering revelation in Part 2 where it finally does the doc\u2019s title some justice by revisiting Berry\u2019s bittersweet Oscars win for Best Actress. To this day, she remains the only Black woman ever to take home the award, and the documentary doesn\u2019t shy away from that glaring injustice. <\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know what the problem is, but that doesn\u2019t sound right to me. Does it sound right to you?\u201d Henson asks frankly. The next scene cuts to Berry, who reflects: \u201cIt\u2019s forced me to ask myself, \u2018Did it matter? Did it change anything for women of color, for my sisters, for our journey?\u2019\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\"In<\/div>\n
In the Apple TV+ documentary, Halle Berry reflects on what has \u2014 and hasn’t changed \u2014 for Black actresses in Hollywood following her historic Best Actress win at the 2002 Oscars.<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n
\n

Berry\u2019s questions are poignantly contrast with the 2021 Oscars, where both Viola Davis and Andra Day were both up for Best Actress \u2014 the second time two Black women competed in the category in almost 50 years \u2014 for their moving performances in \u201cMa Rainey\u2019s Black Bottom\u201d and \u201cThe United States vs. Billie Holiday,\u201d respectively, only to lose to Frances McDormand for \u201cNomadland.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Several scenarios like it are replayed through archived footage, with previous Best Actress nominees like Dorothy Dandridge (1955), Diana Ross and Cicely Tyson (1973), Diahann Carroll (1975), Whoopi Goldberg (1986), Angela Bassett (1994), Gabourey Sidibe (2010), and others all losing in the category.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

It\u2019s in these moments that the documentary engages with the discourse its title suggests, offering the kind of nuance the subject so desperately requires when discussing the imbalance within Hollywood. If only those instances were more prominent.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\"Ruth<\/div>\n
Ruth Negga gets emotional as she reflects on what being number one on the call sheet means to her in Shola Lynch’s “Number One on the Call Sheet: Black Leading Women in Hollywood” documentary.<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n
\n

This makes it all the more frustrating when both parts of the documentary reserve their final moments to offer this much-needed introspection. <\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a responsibility that goes along with being number one on the call sheet,\u201d Don Cheadle vents at the end of Part 1. \u201cIt\u2019s not just about being the first person, the one who has the most lines and leads. You\u2019re kind of setting the tone.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

In Part 2, Ruth Negga tacks onto that, saying: \u201cWhen you see \u2018number one\u2019 and you see your name, you\u2019re always aware, as a woman and as a woman of color, it\u2019s not just about you and you know that. Especially when you know how few people who look like you that that\u2019s applied to in the past.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n

Enjoy celebrity.land Entertainment \u2014 Ad Free<\/h4>\n
\n
\n
\n

We’re bringing you the exclusives, scoops and hot takes on the news all your friends are talking about. Join our loyalty program to support our work and go ad-free<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

You’ve supported celebrity.land before, and we’ll be honest \u2014 we could use your help again. We won’t back down from our mission of providing free, fair news during this critical moment. But we can’t do it without you.<\/p>\n

For the first time, we’re offering an ad-free experience<\/a> to qualifying contributors who support our fearless journalism. We hope you’ll join us.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

You’ve supported celebrity.land before, and we’ll be honest \u2014 we could use your help again. We won’t back down from our mission of providing free, fair news during this critical moment. But we can’t do it without you.<\/p>\n

For the first time, we’re offering an ad-free experience<\/a> to qualifying contributors who support our fearless journalism. We hope you’ll join us.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Support celebrity.land<\/a><\/p>\n

Already contributed? Log in to hide these messages.<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n

\u201cThe gratitude that one feels\u2026 that can be intense,\u201d she adds, welling up with tears. \u201cBecause you feel that there\u2019s a generational thing happening here and that you\u2019re a part of something bigger than you. And that\u2019s at once beautiful, but also, like, quite terrifying.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

\u201cNumber One on the Call Sheet\u201d has its moments of catharsis and that shouldn\u2019t be discounted. But the documentary shouldn\u2019t make them so hard to find.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

\u201cNumber One on the Call Sheet\u201d is streaming on Apple TV+.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\u2018 The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n

\u2018 Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.celebrity.land \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n

\u2018 O artigo anterior foi obtido e traduzido do site internacional da celebrity.land \u2019 <\/em> <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In the past decade or so, there have been a handful of documentary iterations that have retraced the rich history of Black Hollywood back and forth and back again. Whether celebratory or educational, our appetite for these cultural explorations seems insatiable. That\u2019s, in large part, because the enduring impact of Black creativity in entertainment can […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_override_counter":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[40],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1254965","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-fofocas"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/pt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1254965","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/pt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/pt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/pt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/pt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1254965"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/pt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1254965\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/pt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1254965"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/pt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1254965"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/pt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1254965"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}