Brandy Norwood and Kathryn Hunter star in the new psychological thriller The Front Room. In it, everything goes to hell for newly pregnant Belinda (Brandy) after her mother-in-law (Hunter) moves in and tries to get her claws on the child.
The film sees Belinda trying to support her husband, Norman, in caring for her mother-in-law, Solange, a charismatic evangelical with racist views who claims to possess Holy Spirit powers and struggles to make it to the bathroom. With the goal of securing Solange’s inheritance at the forefront of their intentions, Belinda and Norman’s at-home environment is turned upside down when Solange takes over the front room they intended to turn into a nursery for their newborn.
The Front Room marks the iconic Grammy Award-winning singer and actor’s return to the horror genre nearly 30 years after making it out alive in 1998’s I Still Know What You Did Last Summer
. But while Brandy’s first horror film served as a classic slasher, the horror in The Front Room is far more psychological—and hilariously absurd.“I think they’re going to love it,” Brandy tells BLACK ENTERPRISE of the new film. “I think they’re going to be afraid. I think they’re going to laugh. I think they’re going to relate to the characters, and they’re going to have a good time.”
Solange’s holy terror is directed at her daughter-in-law, Belinda, and stepson, Norman. They’re a typical millennial couple: deeply in love and eager to start a family but struggling to make ends meet in an inflation-driven society. After recently buying their house, the couple is struggling to pay the mortgage while expecting their rainbow following a stillbirth the pair are still struggling to cope with.
When the opportunity to secure Solange’s inheritance presents itself, Norman and Belinda can’t pass it up—even if it means dealing with Solange’s odd prayers, weak bladder, and refusal to correctly pronounce Belinda’s name. According to Brandy, this situation sets the stage for Belinda to be taken advantage of.
“I think she’s kind-hearted. I think she has a very, very good heart. I think she has empathy for the elderly. I think she has empathy for family. And I think she takes advantage of that,” Brandy explains of her character’s dynamic.
“And she can see that early on that I’m very inviting,” she adds of Solange. “I’m very welcoming. I want her to feel like she’s family. And I think she takes advantage of that.”
The film tackles deep themes of religion and spirituality in a more sinister way, with Solange’s character appearing to take control of Belinda through prayers in another language and relics placed over the baby’s crib. Considering the deep religious aspects of the film, Brandy and Hunter shared how it impacted their approach to their roles.
“I read that and I was taken aback,” Brandy says of her initial response to the script. “But I like the way it was written and how it was executed and how we were able to rehearse it and bring it to life in a powerful way.”
“I think it’s a very powerful and resonant theme in how
religion is used to appropriate and manipulate,” Hunter adds. “And it’s very much alive and kicking as a means to an end today, unfortunately, in many different cultures. And quite frightening. So it works.”
Press play below for the full interview, and be sure to check out The Front Room when it hits theaters nationwide on Sept. 6.
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