*On this day in 2002, Beyonce made her feature film debut in “Austin Powers in Goldmember,” a role she says took a long time to shake off once filming was complete.
In fact, she showed up to the film’s July 14 press junket in one of the afro wigs worn by her character Foxxy Cleopatra, inspired by the 70s blaxploitation era film sirens like “Foxy Brown” star Pam Grier and “Cleopatra Jones” actress Tamara Dobson.
“I actually, 3 years ago, stopped getting a relaxer,” Bey told us in 2002. “I kept it out and I eventually cut it all [out] and I was too scared to wear it like this. But then once I did Foxxy Cleopatra, I got used to it. And now, I’m taking the whole style… I don’t know how long I’ll wear it like this, but it’s fun.”
It wasn’t just the character’s hair that stayed with Beyonce, but also Foxxy’s vernacular. Bey told us of a L’Oreal commercial she filmed shortly after “Goldmember” wrapped, where she kept messing up the line, “Because you’re worth it.”
“I was saying, ‘Because you’re worth it, sugar,” in the sass of Foxxy Cleopatra. “And they were like, ‘What is wrong with her?’ It was right after the movie and I was still in character. It took me forever! My mama was like, ‘What is wrong with you? Why do you sound like that? Where is Beyonce?’ So it took me a while to get out of that whole thing.”
Watch Beyonce’s 2002 L’Oreal ad below:
In addition to “sugar,” Foxxy Cleopatra’s liberal use of “baby” also stuck with her, even changing her own personal awkwardness with the word.
“I felt weird saying ‘baby.’ Now I can say ‘baby’ to people,” said the then 20-year-old vocal powerhouse. “I took that with me.”
Listen to a clip from Beyonce’s July 14, 2002 radio roundtable interview below:
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