Sisters Reina and Regina King

Hey fam, Hello Sunshine.

Today on the bright Side, Oscar Award winner Regina King and her closest collaborator, her sister, Reina King, share the secret to sisterly success, both on screen and off.

It's Tuesday, May seventh. I'm Danielle Robe.

And I'm Simone Boyce and this is the bright Side from Hello Sunshine. Danielle. I saw this movie. I can't get out of my head. It's called The Idea of You. Have you heard about it?

Wait?

Yes?

Because my mom texted me to watch this.

It's so good.

It's based on a book of the same name by an author named Robin Lee, so there was a huge fandom around the book, and the movie stars Anne Hathaway and Nicholas Gallatzine. The reason why this is so refreshing is because it's a rom com about a forty year old mom who falls in love with a hot twenty four year old pop star. So already, I just love the way that that's flipping so many societal double standards

I kind of love that women are flipping it on its head. We see older men date younger women all the time, so I actually can't wait to watch this.

I couldn't agree more.

You know, Anne Hathaway is really having a moment. She was kind of ostracized. Everybody said she was unlikable in Hollywood. I've always really loved her, and so this film really feels like part of her resurgence.

I think it's really empowering to see her in this role because she gets to kind of gain the upper hand in that commentary around just the nastiness that can happen in media and celebrity and entertainment reporting. So I love that for her. And then just in hearing the way that she's been promoting this film, there's some one

Yeah.

Oh, I love that so much.

And it's also kind of like a new version of the rom com. You know, the old version had really sort of flat female characters, and she feels so round and interesting at imagery of Blooming is even interesting.

I can't wait for you to see it. I think you're gonna love it. I can't wait to talk about it.

There's actually another female centric show that has just been on my mind. Hacks season three is out. I binged season one and two. Have you seen this No, but everyone tells me that I would love it. I need to get on the hackstrain. I love it because it centers around comedy in particular, but it also kind of talks about the disconnect between the two generations of feminism and it's very, very funny.

I think it's a.

Must watch juicy.

Well, speaking of women defying expectations, there's actually a little news out that I found interesting. Miss Usa Noeli Avoit relinquished her title and her crown to prioritize her mental health. She was crowned Miss USA back in September, and then just yesterday she took to Instagram to announce her resignation, and I want to read you one part that really

People used to just power through.

It's really courageous, and like you said, she clearly has a lot of self awareness as a twenty four year old, I think I would have just powered through at twenty four, and I don't know that that would have been healthy. So I really admire her willingness to accept the sacrifices that come with making such a bold move like this. It honestly reminds me a lot of when Simone Biles

You don't often see people take a step back at the pinnacle of their career, you know, like we see people fight so hard for these moments, for the crown, for the Olympics, for a certain job as an executive. And I think we're seeing something in culture actually where maybe all that glitters isn't gold, and we're hearing people talk about that They used to just step away and not talk about why.

Now they're giving us the why.

To be honest.

When it comes to the world of pageants specifically, I'm kind of surprised that they're still as present in.

Our society as a whole nother topic.

I know that a lot of people gain a lot from these pageants, from the experience, there opportunities, it sets you up for, you know, careers in broadcasts or what have you. But there's a lot of it that is really dated that reinforces stereotypes that aren't helpful to us as women. So maybe this is part of a larger conversation, a larger reckoning that we're going to have around pageants in general.

I have so many thoughts on pageants.

You know, the most beautiful women that I know have bumps and bruises and scars and are perfectly imperfect. And I've never been a fan of the sort of faux perfectionism that pageants.

And also, there's no male equivalent.

Where's the male pageant where they're walking around in speedos?

There is none.

Mister universe. Bodybuilding, That's the only thing I can think of. But it's different, it feels different. You don't have to wear a ball gown. You know what feels like the theme of this discussion that we just had, Danielle, it's choice. It's women's centering choice. I mean, from Anne Hathaway's character in this The Idea of You movie to Noeli a Void, I mean, these women are boldly, bravely making choices that suit them, and they're saying that the opinions of other

It actually takes a lot of self efficacy to do that. It's really bold and it's really challenging. So we applaud her.

All.

Right after the break, Regina and Reina King tell us why they love acting and directing as a family affair, and about their latest project, Netflix's limited series, A Man in Full.

We'll be right back, y'all. Welcome back to the bright Side, y'all, Danielle. Today is such a special day for the show. We are joined by two sisters who are, let's face it, Hollywood royalty.

It's Regina King and Rena King. You can say that again.

You know Regina King as an Oscar Emmy and Golden Globe winning actor. You've seen her in films like If Beale Street Could Talk, Jerry Maguire, and so many others. More recently, Regina's been focusing on directing and producing projects with her sister, Reina King. Raina's an accomplished actress, producer, and co founder of their production company Royalties. As sisters, they're taking their storytelling to the next level, y'all.

They are coming in hot off the success of their Shirley Chisholm biopic Sureley. Regina and Raina also co executive produced the new Netflix series A Man in Full, with Regina directing as a well Reina Regina, Welcome to the bright Side.

Hello, Hello, bright Side, Hello bright Side.

We're really happy to have you here. We've never had sisters in studio.

Oh my god.

First, yeah, this is special for us.

Danielle and I always talk about how we wish we had sisters growing up. I mean, I didn't have anybody to steal my clothes, and I'm still kind of bitter about it. You too, are sisterhood goals. How imaginative were you as little girls?

Oh?

White imaginative, I would say, you know, our mother was a teacher.

I still I feel like always will be.

And we did plays in the house, yes, in our home, in.

The little place you wrote, produced and directed.

Wrote, produced, We wrote and produced and directed. But they were all improvised.

Exactly exactly a lot of improvising, lot of living. And then there were sometimes that lyrics were provided when it was the Prince album or oh okay, yeah yeah, Heart, which was a big one for us. What a little bit of Jill Silverstein. Yes, where the Sidewalk ends. I think we probably memorize half of that book of poetry.

So yeah, I guess we did variety shows.

Ran Yeah, y'all did it all.

So I kind of want you to bring those back.

Just maybe I'm just saying, yes, you both have been acting professionally since you were kids, Regina. I think about Boys in the Hood, Poetic Justice, Higher Learning, Living Single, how Stella got her groove back, Jerry McGuire, Ray, and then of course everything recently, which was harder. They fall one night in Miami, The Watchman. I think it's cool that you know each other's works so well, like your fans of your sister.

It sounds like, oh yeah, I am a huge fan on end offscreen.

That's what made us become royal ties.

You know, when Raina decided to no longer continue in acting, it wasn't like a big newsflash. She just kind of gravitated doing so. I mean, Reina has been a talent agent, She's worked in post production, you know, in all these different spaces within our entertainment industries that make the art of it. She had gathered just so much knowledge along the way, and it just made sense to bring all of that together.

So yeah, I'm just a fan.

Of her desire to, at such a young age, have the foresight to exist in all of these different spaces.

I want to talk about the origins of Royal Ties, and I'll start by just zooming out a little bit and talk about our boss here and your former co star, Reese Witherspoon, who founded Hell of Sunshine out of a need to champion female centered stories. And I want to know what was the need that you felt called to meet with your production company Royalties.

Wow, I would say a part of it would definitely be female driven stories.

I think more than anything was.

That we have such a huge love for storytelling and being in the business for so long, have noticed that majority of artists that put out content certain type of genre, certain type of storytelling, and we've always been a fan of all of it, and so just wanting to be in a space where we can do a little bit.

I love that you're not afraid to explore that vast range between those two projects. Is there is there a through line or an intention that you feel grounds each Royaltized production and the projects that you seek out.

I mean, it's funny that you say a through line and just going picking backing off what Virginia was saying earlier in regards to like female driven stories, that even if it's not female driven, we're making sure that women have a role in a strong presence in that project. But I think for us it is I feel like

You mentioned Shirley.

Shirley Chisholm was one of the most impactful historical figures in my life, and I know Simone feels really connected to her as well. We both loved the film. I've heard you say roles choose the actor. How did Shirley choose you? First of all, I think in stature, she chose me.

You know, I'm small but mighty, and I guess I'm speaking a bit spiritually as well. You know, this woman did something at a time that you know when we see women having these first now and then you think about the climate in which she was having a first politically, a space that was not wanting not only black people

They number a lot of sense. And Reina, you play Shirley's sister Muriel in the film, and you have worked together on the same show two to seven, but not in the same scene.

So to now, all.

These years later, get to actually play sisters and share scenes together, I mean that sounds like such a special experience.

It truly was.

And what other time and what other moment or opportunity would present itself that we would actually be able to do that I mean, it.

Was not planned.

It was not part of any original discussion in the writing of that script and the discussion of production. And I first said no, and I thought about it. I talked to Regina. I felt like, when would I get an opportunity like this again? I think somewhere inside of me, deep down, the acting bug is always there.

I'm a big fan of theater.

I used to say, Oh, if I were to go back, I would do something on stage.

So it was in there, but it was thirty years deep in there.

And when would we have the opportunity to be on the same project and also be playing sisters for this project about this woman that we were so passionate about getting out to the masses to audiences not just within the country but globally.

Who else but me should have played that role.

I was talking to my mom about Shirley Chisholm, and she reminded me that my grandmother was inspired to run for office because of Shirley, and my grandmother became a school board member in nineteen seventy seven. She was the only black member on the school board in Prince George's County during integration and bussing, and.

It's because of Shirley.

So wow, just thinking about her impact and all the future Shirley's that will see just gives me chills, and that.

Would make her very happy.

It makes Shirley very happy and very proud because I think that was part of inspiring and getting people to be active.

So that would make her very happy to.

Hear that you both had been working on this project for fifteen years. That is an investment of time, of passion, of love, of dedication.

What kept you going?

I think, just like what you just shared about your grandmother, you know, I think that encapsulates all of the things that kept us going and not letting go even when we veered off and did other projects and came back to it. I guess it all comes back to endurance

You know.

You just mentioned Reese and you did an interview with her a few years ago and she said one of the first things she noticed about you was truth. And now I get to meet your sister and I'm noticing the same thing. Oh yeah, Why are you guys truth seekers?

Is that?

Where does that come from?

I guess you just don't know any other way to be.

It's another one of those things I think that are in our DNA. I mean, nobody wants to be lied to, but I feel like, you know, the world that we live in is filled with so many untruths and smoking mirrors that you're constantly already seeking get and kind of trying to get through the untruths and lies is tiresome.

Well, can you spot it quickly? Because you guys are so truthful.

I feel like I've gotten a lot better at it that sometimes somebody will say something, I'm like, now, that's that's not true. Depending on who it could be, Regina and you know, someone else that I trust.

Now you know that's not true. That did not happen, and that's not going to happen.

Regina, you have your hand and footprint on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Your sister was there with you that day.

Why was it so special to have your hand and footprint on Hollywood Boulevard?

For me?

You know, I could put my put my hands and my foot in it. It is a part of me, my DNA up in that sement, you know what I mean.

And those get walked on a lot less also love it.

It's your literal fingerprint on Hollywood and on this city that you were born and raised in Dad born and bred and yeah, yes, and I'm an Angelino too, and there's not many of us.

So you get it. You get it. I do.

I love this city with all of my heart, all of my heart. And then I also think about all the people who can then come in after you and put their hands in those spots.

So it's like we're having a handshake or a hug.

Yes, I want to hear how you two have grown as sisters over the past seven years that you've been working together. I mean, I imagine you're both on your own growth journeys, but you're also growing together too.

M wow.

From my part is recognizing out of feeling our relationship shift from big sister, little sister to damn you pretty dope. And it's been like that for years, but it takes on different versions since Royal Ties has been in the place of actively producing things and not trying to get something produced. To see how we're equals is been when we joke around and stuff. I can run the little sister jokes, but not anymore.

I can't. I can't. I was going to say, yet, we're still there. It's in there, it's it's still that part has.

Not do they come up on said.

They come up anywhere and everywhere.

There's no there.

There's not a safe space.

Lady, Okay, I think that's a perfect spot to take a quick break.

When we come back, we'll hear from Regina and Reina on all the things that get better with age. We're back with Raina and Regina King. I want to talk about your new series of Man in Full because Jeff Daniels, Diane Lane, it's a stacked cast. Why did you want to be a part of telling this particular story.

Well, it's so far away from what anyone would think, you know, Regina and Rayna would go out and produce a story of Tom wolf adaptation that Charlie Croker that we did is much different because I would say that the Charlie Croker and Tom Wolfe's book was more than racial racist adjacent, So that spin on it is different.

But no one would ever think that we would.

Be producing, directing something like that, or to even like something like that. But we are freaking the huge fans of Dallas what jr. Ewing, You know, those type of stories we grew up on and we love them. So it was the perfect fit in a lot of ways because it spoke.

To us being able to tell the.

Story that has that big space of those dynasty stories that we grew up on loving.

And then David Kelly.

She had me and David Kelly. It was literally She's like rain A, David shout to me, and so David Kelly, I mean, come.

On, he does courtroom really well.

He does courtroom really well.

You know, I have to say that, as Regina said, you know, with this Tom wif book that took place in the nineties and Tom was writing, you kind of knew you were going to be in good hands with David kind of you know, it's a large, dense book, you know, and these are six episodes, but playing a nice balance of what was put forward in the book in treating it, you know, delicately but still in your face, the absurdity of it and things that you can relate to even if you've seen it outside of what your

One of the things, you know, that's so hard when you're trying to adapt something that's, like rain I said, in a thousand page book into six episodes. But that thing that fascinated us most about the book, and we think that David even fine tuned it even more, is that when you most of us can't relate to people who have money on that level or who deal in

Speak for yourself, Regina. I don't know what you're talking about. I've never I can't relate. I don't know what you're saying. Regina. You've directed episodes of Insecure, this is a scandal, shameless animal, I mean, the list goes on, and now a man in full I'm curious how directing feels in your body. Do you if you still get nerves whenever you show up to set. Do you have more nerves when you show up to day one on set as someone like Shirley, like as an actor or as a director.

As a director? Really why?

Yeah, Well, because Shirley's kind of like Beyonce, you know what I mean, Like nobody else is in a category with Beyonce.

Beyonce is like kind of on our own strategy or But as.

A director, the responsibility is so much bigger it is for an actor.

Yeah, there is that.

It's time consuming and the preparation in the beginning, but you're only preparing for that character.

And you are remaining open to how.

Your character within that story is going to come together, and you're leaning on your scene partners at that point with all of that.

But as a director, it's all of.

It, all of these intentions and motivations and stories that this character wants to tell. What does the space that they're going to tell it in look like?

Yeah? Then you know.

I mean it's just so in every department that helps make that happen.

Yes, yeah, you know, so many layers, so yeah, big nerves. I come to set way earlier as a director than I do as an actor, but I don't have to go into the hair and makeup.

Now, that's how you feel about Podcasting's funny.

That's how if I go to makeup trailers because I'm going to say, all right.

Everybody, we're going to have a great day to day.

You know? Is that what you do to hide people up on set? Do you have a ritual where you HiPE people up?

It's a situational right.

It depends on the cast, It depends on the crew.

I remember, it's so strange.

I was directing an episode of The Good Doctor and at the.

End of those.

Some of those days when we rap, I would play a song, you know, and then it kind of like turned into someone would come and say, can we play such and such at the end, you know, when we were and it was kind of fun, and I have not done that since then.

Well, speaking of film, you started a movie with our executive producer, Reese Witherspoon, Legally Blonde two. What do you remember about working with Reese?

You know, it's so funny about that, and it's interesting.

What I remember the most is that she.

Was pregnant and she didn't know it for a small amount of it. And I feel like, not long after she knew, I knew, I felt and I.

Felt close enough to ask her at the end.

And so I remember that just that whole time, from when I first clocked that I thought she was pregnant to asking her and just watching her so gracefully through her being an executive producer and the star and you know, a home because you're a mother, you're a home before you give birth, and she was so graceful.

And whenever I'm.

Asked about Legally Blond two, that is always the first thought that comes up. But I never have the space to actually say that, so I usually say something about, you know, are our love for Sally Field?

Oh, we love important, but that's a really special thing to share.

Thank you for giving us.

Yeah, yeah, we love that story. I have one more

Ray Aina's eyes.

Raina's eyes are saying everything right now, but did you did either of you have ever experience anything like that? Or what are some of the other shocking things that happened in the business back then that would never fly today.

Well, I can definitely say I by the time I stopped acting and was focusing on high school, I was too young for that to have happened.

For me personally, that was not happening.

And even if I was eighteen nineteen, that would not have happened either. Now I will say that if there was you know, in that chemistry read, if there was like one male actor that I'm going to seal the deal, then that one person might have gotten that kiss, but I would have been kissing on the cheek, on the neck, and everywhere else that wouldn't have.

What does big Sis say about this?

I definitely never experienced it personally. I definitely had peers that were auditioning and having to in my opinion.

Wear clothes or be way.

More intimate than what I thought they should be doing. But the thing that I did experience as an actor, and thankfully having such awesome agents who are still my agents to this day, experiencing roles that were written as white just because white people were writing them, and that character could be any color. And so my agents really pushing in some spaces where a role was written for white but like, no, you should see Regina, No, Regina should go in with this.

And then to bring it back to Reese Leally Blontu.

That was Reese as a producer and that producing team that saw and understood that the best actor for.

The role should play that that part.

And so Grace happened to be black, and I think that that is still part of the culture where it shifted to not being written or the character description not being written as white or black. God forbid you're Latino or Asian. That's the percentage. It is even lower as far as the possibility. But now I feel like, or at least six or seven years ago, you were hearing racially ambiguous is the which meant not white but not necessarily black.

Yeah, what does that mean exactly?

Does that mean we want you to look like mixed dish, you know, or she can be whatever.

You don't really see.

That so much with the male character descriptions.

So the king Sisters hold a lot of wisdom.

Regina.

You told Vogue UK a few years ago, I feel like I'm so much more interesting now than I was at twenty five. Who I loved, you said, you bring so much more to the table. So we talk about aging on this show a lot, because the messages we get make us feel like women expire, and then we talk to women in real life and it's the exact opposite. So can you share with us one or two things that you feel like has just gotten better?

Sex more? But no, seriously, I mean, you know, I.

Recognize that having a partner that really well one loves you but wants to please you, and being patient enough to receive that. I feel like just when I was younger, I wouldn't wouldn't have even allowed myself to slow down enough to recognize that the reason I'm not coming is because.

It's fun in the beginning, a little bit of for a player or whatever. But then then you know, yeah.

But not when they boring exactly that, not when they're not boring.

In some ways.

But it's because I was not allowing myself to be more in tune with myself to receive what should and could be received, because I was not allowing myself to be a good picker.

I really I have to tell you. I love that you said that. I think a lot of women relate to that, and we don't talk about it all the time.

Talk about it, talk about it for that, talk about it, Reina, let's got better.

How are you going to top that one, RAINA, I don't. Yeah.

I think I may have been a little bit ahead of my time on the sex one. So that was the issue, I would say, because I do truly feel the getting older is truly better. You know, I literally have friends that either won't tell you the A and I tell them They're like, I don't want to grow up, and I like that I'm growing up and have grown up.

Just existing.

Yeah, you know, you brought me into my next question that was perfect.

What's bringing you joy right now?

I feel like, you know, sometimes people say, you know, take the wave, you know, and.

Ride the wave.

I feel like our waves or waves are going to keep on coming and be ties that are going to get bigger. And even though I have these moments, I'm like, I'm so tired.

I could not be working. I'm enjoying working.

I'm enjoying my career. I like my relationship I'm in.

We don't live together, Katherine Hepburn said, men and women shouldn't live together, they should be neighbors and visit now and then. So I'm just feel good in the place that I'm in and the space that I'm in.

I'm so happy for you.

Thank you, Regina.

What's bringing you joy?

You know that's a complicated question for me, so I can only speak to it in.

A moment by moment face.

So right now, having this interview with my sister and meeting to lovely women that seem genuinely interested in hearing from us and not having to wear makeup while doing it bringing me lots of.

I will say, as podcasts go for the ones when you can actually see people, I don't.

No one can see us. These two ladies look pretty good.

And they don't have one a bunch of makeup.

Maybe maybe their.

Eyebrows maybe you know, maybe filled it in with little Mabeline as they shift.

But these are just some natural beauty faces going on right here.

Thank you both for your honesty and just keeping it real with us.

Thank you, thank you, Thank you for having us.

And keep killing it. It's a hard marketplace out there, and Royaltize is killing it.

We're going to try, but y'all are taking big swings and that's really brave and that's really courageous. And you can just tell that you lead with purpose and everything that you do. So I think if you do that, I mean, what more can you ask for?

I love that get together.

Well until we speak again, lady, Yes, thank you so much.

Thank you.

Regina and Raina King are executive producers of the new Netflix series A Man in Full I'm the Netflix film. Surely both are available to stream right now.

That's it for today's show. Tomorrow, we have doctor Elizabeth Coleman. She's a medical historian walking us through sexism in medicine and how the future is changing for women. Listen and follow the bright Side on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

I'm Simone Voice.

You can find me at simone Voice on Instagram and TikTok.

I'm Danielle Robe on Instagram and TikTok.

That's ro Bay. We'll see you tomorrow.

Keep looking on the bright side.