As the culture prepares to kiss “The Best Man” franchise goodbye, creator Malcolm D. Lee is just happy that he was able to create something that has allowed so many people to see themselves reflected on the big screen.
“For me, it’s the opportunity to really showcase not only these actors, but these characters that are reflective of many audience members who love the franchise,” said Lee when asked what he is most proud about having started something like this. “You know, I think that people see themselves in these characters because they know these characters. And so, I’m very proud that people feel like these characters or they want to be these characters. It’s aspirational, yet relatable.”
“The Best Man: The Final Chapters” takes the beloved 1999 film to the television space and is the third installment after the movie’s sequel hit theaters in 2013, nearly 15 years after the world was first introduced to the characters portrayed by Taye Diggs, Morris Chestnut, Nia Long, Sanaa Lathan, Monica Calhoun, Terrence Howard, Regina Hall, and Melissa De Sousa. This is also Lee’s introduction into creating a story for TV.
“I learned a lot,” Lee recalled. “Television is a different medium than film and I think that there are little nuances and rules that have to be followed. There’s a lot more compromises and a lot more cooks in the kitchen, which I don’t really love, but at the end of the day, it’s about storytelling. And it’s about these characters and I’ve always been a strong character-driven storyteller and so it’s a good medium for me and I got to figure out and what I figured out is that I’m still able to tell the same story of these characters, just in a longer form.”
While Lee says a lot of people may want the story to continue, “The Best Man: The Final Chapters” officially ends a story and completes the reason that he started this all more than two decades ago.
“I think we have closed the books,” he said. “I think that there will be people who may want more because they love the characters so much and they want to see more adventures and escapades with them, but you know, I think we’ve done it and shut it down.”
“The Best Man: The Final Chapters” premieres on Peacock December 22nd.
Watch the official trailer for the show HERE.
