Halle Berry Recalls Telling 'X-Men' Director "Where to Go and How to Get There"

In the present, Oscar-winning actress Halle Berry is in the middle of a press run, promoting her new thrilling drama, Crime 101, in which she stars alongside Mark Ruffalo and Chris Hemsworth. While the film is already wowing critics (Crime 101 is “Certified Fresh” on Rotten Tomatoes with a 86% score as of publication) and is grabbing plenty of attention from moviegoers, Berry took a moment during an exclusive interview with Entertainment Weekly to bring up her X-Men days. 

In particular, when the Swordfish actress was talking about the character she portrays in Crime 101, she was asked if the character’s experience mimicked her own life. That’s when she recalled a contentious moment between her and X-Men director Bryan Singer. 

Halle Berry Once Chewed Director Bryan Singer Out Before Walking Off Set

Now back in 2021, Alan Cumming (The Traitors) said in his memoir that it wasn’t all peaches and cream on the set of X2: X-Men United. He brought up the fact that several members of the cast had an issue with Singer, and during a confrontation of sorts with the director and the cast, it was Berry who told Singer, “You can kiss my Black a**.” 

Well, adding more context to that story, Berry shared with Entertainment Weekly that part of what drew her to play the role of Sharon in Crime 101 is the fact that she can relate to the character having to battle against issues of sexism, racism, and ageism. Sharon eventually reaches a point in the movie where she calls out her boss for his sexism, and it’s that satisfying moment that the Entertainment Weekly interviewer asked if Berry has ever lived in her real life. This brings us back to Berry and Singer. Berry recollected: 

“Oh, yes. Oh, yeah. Oh, yes. A really famous one, when I got to tell Bryan Singer just where to go and how to get there on the set of X-Men one day. Everybody was mad, but they all said to me, 'Halle, you go tell 'em,' because they knew I would. And it's one of the greatest days on a set, telling someone who was wronging the entire crew, the entire cast, exactly where to go. And then I got on a plane and flew home with my X-Men suit on.” 

By the way, Ruffalo, who joined Berry for the Entertainment Weekly interview alongside Hemsworth, appears to really enjoy this story. He commented, “That's the best story. You [Berry] have great stories.”

Where to Watch 'Crime 101'

Crime 101 is now available to watch exclusively in theaters. So if you’re still looking for something to do this Valentine’s Day weekend, it’s worth checking out. 

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