Original ‘Dreamgirl’ Sheryl Lee Ralph Says It Hurt To Not Be Included In 2006 Remake: Maybe Somebody Will Leave Us In Their Will & Make It Right

Original ‘Dreamgirl’ Sheryl Lee Ralph Says It Hurt To Not Be Included In 2006 Remake: Maybe Somebody Will Leave Us In Their Will & Make It Right

Sheryl Lee Ralph feels as though she should have been part of the 2006 Dreamgirls remake.

If you didn’t know, Sheryl Lee Ralph played Deena in the 1981 Broadway premiere of the Dreamgirls: Original Broadway musical, which also included Jennifer Holliday as Effie White and Loretta Devine as Lorell Robinson.

During a sit down with fellow actress Jackée Harry for ESSENCE, the Emmy-award winning actress shared that it hurt her feelings not to be included in the remake of the film. Sheryl Lee Ralph said,

“It hurt my feelings because we literally created Dreamgirls. Nobody else created that. Tom Eyen handpicked us, put us altogether, we improvised and put those moments together that became that groundbreaking musical. “

She continued,

“And when they chose to go to Hollywood [and] make the movie, to act like we weren’t a part. There were so many things they could have done, that they could have added us … but the choice was made not to. … I’m just like, it’s OK, because we’re moving forward. Who knows, maybe somebody will leave us in their will and make it right.”

Sheryl Lee Ralph on not being included in the 2006 Dreamgirls movie: “It hurt my feelings.” pic.twitter.com/eXTtJmhu5x

— Brande Victorian (@Be_Vic) January 5, 2023

As previously reported, Ralph shared in 2019 that she was shunned from the opportunity to work with Beyoncé Knowles-Carter during the filming process for the 2006 film.

Beyonce

The Moesha actress said at the time that she believed her advice could have been invaluable to Queen Bey, considering her role as the original Deena earned her a Tony award nomination. Ralph said,

“I didn’t get a chance to because they kept us apart. They said — what was said to me — and, you know, I’ve been around long enough to actually remember what was said to me, they said that it would be a distraction to have the two of us together.”

She added,

“…What does that mean? So it just never happened, we never came together.”

Original "Dreamgirls" star @thesherylralph says she didn't "get a chance" to give Beyoncé advice about the role: "They said it would be a distraction to have the two of us together." ? pic.twitter.com/lMkrRKhZyC

— AM2DM by BuzzFeed News (@AM2DM) January 8, 2019

Ralph‘s career spans decades, beginning in the 1970s. She took a six-year hiatus from acting after her Broadway musical Wicked performance as Madame Morrible in 2016. Her most recent role comes as a no-nonsense kindergarten teacher in Quinta Brunson‘s Abbott Elementary, the popular ABC mockumentary sitcom which she won her first Emmy for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series.

In addition to Beyoncé Knowles-Carter‘s leading role in the Dreamgirls remake, the film also starred Jennifer Hudson as Effie and Anika Noni Rose as Lorell.

What are your thoughts on what Sheryl Lee Ralph shared? Let us know in the comments!