In 1985, Whoopi Goldberg introduced fans to Celie when she portrayed the character on-screen in the first "The Color Purple" film.
Now, nearly 40 years later, Fantasia Barrino is taking on the role of Celie in the Broadway musical adaptation of "The Color Purple," set to hit theaters on Christmas Day.
Leading up to the film, Oprah Winfrey, who played Sofia in the 1985 original film, penned a special message on Instagram about each of the core cast members in a "spotlight" post, applauding their portrayals and sharing how they "embodied" their characters.
"Fantasia unleashes her primal core and talent in every single scene of this new movie. She reinvents Celie with her passion, her guts, and her fortitude to not give up on yourself," Winfrey wrote in part about Barrino's portrayal. "Fantasia says she has lost everything twice. She has fallen down but she’s up now. To see Fantasia on the big screen is to witness triumph in action."
Read on to see how the cast has changed from the 1985 film to the 2023 movie.
Whoopi Goldberg and Fantasia Barrino as Celie
In the "The Color Purple," Celie has one of the most harrowing journeys in the film. She endured years of abuse at the hands of her husband, Mister, and was separated from the one person who meant the world to her — her sister, Nettie.
In 1985, Whoopi Goldberg took on the role of Celie and her performance earned her a best actress Oscar nomination.
In 2005, Fantasia Barrino played the same role in the Broadway music adaptation. However, when casting began for the new movie that featured songs from the Broadway play, Barrino said she was hesitant to join the cast.
During a Dec. 14 appearance on TODAY With Hoda & Jenna, she said she only joined the 2023 film because she believed in director Blitz Bazawule's vision.
“In the movie, Blitz, our amazing director, he gives Celie an imagination,” Barrino said. “She didn’t have that on Broadway, so you don’t get to see how she processes through. It’s just being told (she’s) ugly, she’s getting beat on, she’s taking care of all these kids. And then here’s, ‘I’m Here,’ and the audience is excited because you want to see her win, but how did she get there? And that’s why I was very proud that he was showing that.”
In the movie and Broadway play, Celie's song “I’m Here,” is significant because it marks a major turning point in Celie’s life when she finally comes into her own and sees her value.
Winfrey shared her thoughts on Barrino's powerful portrayal in a Dec. 23 Instagram post.
"I first met Fantasia when she starred in the 2007 Broadway version of The Color Purple," Winfrey wrote. "She embodied the character of Celie so much that I wondered what could top that. This year, I got my answer."
Akosua Busia and Halle Bailey as Nettie Harris
Celie's loving younger sister, Nettie, has an important role in the movie because she's one of the few people who showed Celie love when Celie was physically and sexually abused by their father.
Akosua Busia brilliantly depicted this character in the original movie before Halle Bailey took on the role in the new musical adaptation.
At a virtual press conference for "The Color Purple," Bailey said she leaned on her relationship with her "Have Mercy" singer sister Chlöe to portray Nettie in the film.
"I was really pulling from my relationship with my own sister, Chlöe, when it came off of building Nettie's personality and her traits and her strength and power," Bailey said.
"And I really honestly was playing off of how my sister Chlöe is for me, and what kind of guide she's been for me my whole life," she continued. "Because Nettie is such a symbol of hope and perseverance and joy, and just that reminder that love and positivity needs to be shown through us even in the darkest moments, I felt like I had a really great guide from my sister Chlöe.
On Dec. 20, Winfrey reflected on Bailey's portrayal of Nettie and how her role in Disney's "The Little Mermaid" helped prepare her for the role.
"We knew she’d do right as Celie’s younger sister not only because she’s a fiercely protective sibling herself in real life, but also by the way she handled everything that came with playing Ariel," Winfrey wrote. "The good and bad were met with Halle’s grace, dignity, and strength. She then brought Young Nettie to life with a fresh, enlivened sassiness to her—even writing an original song for the soundtrack."
Margaret Avery and Taraji P. Henson as Shug Avery
In the original movie, Margaret Avery took on the role of Shug Avery, a lively jazz singer who captivated both Mister and Celie's hearts with her sultry voice and enchanting personality.
After Celie is ripped away from Nettie, she later finds solace in Shug, who shows her what it's like to experience a romantic type of love. The pair eventually share an intimate moment on-screen, and Celie seems to finally come into her own as a woman.
During the virtual press conference for the film, Taraji P. Henson, who plays Shug in the new version, explains why it was important for her to show the softer side of her character.
"I wanted to lean into that tenderness and that sweetness because we just see her being so bigger than life," she said of Shug. "And so that's why those moments with Celie were so tender and so sweet because that's what love is -- just a tender touch of real unconditional love."
"And then they see each other, like, they really see each other and that's when they start to pour into each other," Henson added. "And they teach each other what love really is, and how you handle that because it's not about sex. It's about love. Who cares what they're doing in bed. It's literally about humans connecting and that's what happened with Celia and Shug. It was just such a precious, precious experience actually."
Winfrey agreed, adding in a Dec. 22 Instagram post that she loved how Henson played Shug "like a woman who not only sang the blues but had lived the blues."
"Only Taraji could do that," Winfrey wrote. "She shared that her late father once told her, 'You’re going to be one of the greatest actresses alive but wait until the world hears you sing.' Taraji, the stage is now yours and I already see the standing ovations for you."
Willard E. Pugh and Corey Hawkins as Harpo
Fans initially met Mister's son Harpo when Willard E. Pugh portrayed him in the original film.
Corey Hawkins later took on the role in the musical adaptation and said he experienced a "healing moment" when he was able to watch the movie with his father at the film's LA premiere on Dec. 6.
"I know my pops was just thrilled to be there," he said while becoming emotional at the virtual press conference for “The Color Purple."
Winfrey revealed that Hawkins was the first person to be cast in the film because of his "musical prowess."
"I knew he would play the perfect Harpo — that’s Oprah spelt backwards if you missed that history lesson," she wrote in a Dec. 21 Instagram post. "Corey gave Harpo so much heart that he now represents hope for a new generation of men. In this film he redefines what it means to be in service to the woman you love."
"I’m welcoming Corey to the Purple family with open arms (and dancing feet) and I cannot wait for you to meet his version of Harpo," she added.
Rae Dawn Chong and H.E.R. as Squeak
What would "The Color Purple" be without Squeak and her iconic line, "Harpo, who is that woman?"
Portrayed by Rae Dawn Chong in the 1985 film and Gabriella Sarmiento Wilson, who goes by the stage name of H.E.R., in the 2023 iteration, Squeak is Harpo's second wife, a juke joint waitress and aspiring singer. Although she's seen as the complete opposite of Harpo's first wife, Sofia, her journey is similar to Celie's because she eventually comes into her own, finds her voice and leaves her controlling relationship.
Speaking about her transition into acting, H.E.R. said it was an opportunity to focus on something she's always wanted to pursue.
“I’ve been so focused on making music but I think it’s time now for me to go full throttle with acting,” the five-time Grammy-award-winning singer told Entertainment Weekly in 2021. “I’m working on that right now, following my passion for acting.”
Winfrey wrote in a tribute to H.E.R. on Dec. 21 that she and "The Color Purple" team had their sights set on the singer to play Squeak.
"But she already had an international tour planned at the same time we were shooting," Winfrey revealed. "But she quickly rearranged her schedule because she really wanted to be in this movie."
"I did something similar back when I played Sofia in 1985," she continued. "I put all my vacation and sick days together to take time off to shoot the film. That’s the energy we wanted from everyone joining this Purple family and Gabby was such a great compliment to the cast."
Oprah Winfrey and Danielle Brooks as Sofia
Oprah Winfrey gave one of the most powerful and notable performances in the original "The Color Purple" as Sofia, an outspoken and devoted mother.
Sofia's brazen and unapologetic attitude towards others, especially men, during the early 20th century led her to experience a multitude of hardships, including physical abuse and imprisonment.
Winfrey's performance garnered her an Oscar nomination for best supporting actress and Danielle Brooks, who plays the strong-willed Sofia in the 2023 film, has already been nominated for a Golden Globe.
At the “The Color Purple” virtual press conference, Winfrey, who serves as a co-producer on the film, talked about what it meant to be a part of the project again.
"It is completely full circle for me," Winfrey said about doing the new musical adaptation of the film 40 years after the original one premiered. "...For somebody who's about to turn 70, it is the sweetest, sweetest of moments."
Winfrey celebrated Brooks in an Instagram post Dec. 24, reflecting on how the role of "Sofia is no longer mine."
"Playing her in 1985 gave me more strength in places I didn’t know I needed it. Sofia represents the strength of all the women who came before us, endured so much, and took nobody’s mess. Only Danielle Brooks could play her today," Winfrey wrote.
"What I love about her version of Sofia is that she’s added layers of joy, humor, lightness, and warmth. You’re going to laugh, cry, sing, and dance with her. Sofia is no longer mine, she’s Danielle’s and Danielle rises to meet the moment. I welcome Danielle into the Purple sisterhood with my entire all-my-life-I’ve-had-to-fight heart and I cannot wait for you to meet her Sofia."
Danny Glover and Colman Domingo as Albert 'Mister' Johnson
Anyone who has seen the original "The Color Purple" movie will tell you that it's hard to have love for Danny Glover's character Mister.
He's not only tough on his children, but he's seen as a villain for his mistreatment and abuse of Celie, who he often calls ugly and says will never live up to his girlfriend, Shug Avery.
While Mister's harsh exterior makes him an unlikely fan favorite, the character does attempt to redeem himself towards the end of the film. Viewers learn that how he was raised contributed to his egregious behavior.
Colman Domingo, who plays Mister in the 2023 film, said aside from his character's harsh persona, it's important to remember that Mister is still a man who, like others, had aspirations.
"The thing that stuck out to me about Mister that I hung onto was the fact that, when he's stumbling in drunk, and he says I could've been in Shug's band. Women used to toss off their drawers. I could have been a contender. I could have left," Domingo said at a virtual "The Color Purple" press conference about how his character used to have dreams, too.
In order to portray this complexity on-scene, Domingo said he "needed to go into the darkness of this character, knowing that he affects every single person in this film."
"He's triggering everybody to work through some stuff because he's such a broken individual too," he said.
Winfrey applauded Colman for his "talented, creative, and terrific" portrayal of Mister in the film, writing in a Dec. 22 Instagram post, that his "mom would be proud."
"It’s prophetic and poetic that I get to produce a film that stars Colman Domingo," she wrote in part. "Through his acting, he lets us see what redemption looks like on the face of Mister. Through his kindness, he showed us who he was as a person, checking in on his cast mates between hard takes. What I know for sure is that his mom would be proud because I am, too. I’m thrilled to welcome Colman to the Purple family and I cannot wait for you to meet his version of Mister."
