*Mike Epps claims he was passed over for the role of late comedian Richard Pryor because he refused to sleep with his widow Jennifer Lee Pryor.
“I was gonna play Richard Pryor man, and then his wife—I didn’t screw his wife, his ex-wife and she got mad,” Epps said recently on an episode of the All The Smoke podcast.
Lee Pryor reacted to the remarks in a statement to The Daily Beast. “That’s just low-rent,” she said, adding, “You’re just ghetto, Mike.”
Epps was initially cast to play Prior in producer Lee Daniels’ biopic, but Lee Pryor stated that Epps was no longer considered for the role because he had “aged out.” Lee ultimately backed out to work on “Empire.”
In her statement, Lee Pryor, who controls her late husband’s estate, slammed Epps’ Pryor portrayal in HBO’s Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty series. “He played Richard like a homeless junkie,” she told The Daily Beast. “It was horrible.”
“Mike’s played Richard in a couple of different movies and films, little cameos here and there, and that’s the extent of Mike playing Richard,” Lee Pryor added. “I don’t know why he wants to pick a flight with me and why he would say that [I wanted to sleep with him]. I wouldn’t touch his dick with a 10-foot pole.”
In related news, Epps will host the reboot of BET’s “Comic View,” set to return to BET+ on March 14 after a 16-year hiatus.
Produced by Kevin Hart’s Hartbeat, the reboot features an all-star lineup of comedians, including Brandi Denise, Jayski, DC Young Fly, Tony Roberts, Navv Greene, Bresha Webb, Tommy Davidson, Lavar Walker, Tacarra Williams, rapper Tip “T.I” Harris. Earlier, we reported that T.I. will make his televised standup debut on the new “Comic View,” according to the press release.
“The original series debuted in 1992 on BET, and featured a mix of new and veteran comedians from across the country in their element: entertaining the masses with their side-splitting comedy,” per the release. “It’s been hosted by legendary comedians D.L. Hughley, Cedric The Entertainer, Kevin Hart, and Sommore, amongst others. Its final episode ran in December 2008.”
BET president and CEO Scott Mills said, “We’re excited to partner again with Hartbeat to bring back our culturally iconic franchise ‘Comic View’ during Hartbeat Weekend. Over 30 years ago, ‘Comic View’ set the footprint for stand-up specials and launched the careers of some of today’s mega-comedy stars. We can’t wait to see this new group of talented and rising comedians.”
READ MORE: Richard Pryor is Back On Vinyl, Widow Says He is ‘Still the King’ | EUR Exclusive
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