Vivica A. Fox reveals Career Advice From Kill Bill Co-Star Uma Thurman: ‘Be More Manipulative’

The world might have been put on hiatus because of Covid-19 but Vivica A. Fox has never been busier - and she’s loving it. 'I was filming Empire in Chicago, doing public appearances and everything just went to a grinding halt,' she tells Grazia via Zoom. 'But I had films coming out, a new podcast show dropping too, so we all just adjusted, darling!'

One of those films is Arkansas, an American crime thriller which the star of Independence Day and Kill Bill appears in alongside John Malkovich, Vince Vaughn and Liam Hemsworth{ =nofollow}. Fox was looking forward to working with Hemsworth again after the two had starred together in the critically-panned Independence Day Resurgence. 'Those were some big shoes to fill,' Fox says of the 2016 sequel. 'And once we didn't get Will [Smith] back, things had to shift and I felt so bad for the younger generation. It just wasn't good.

'I was at the premiere,' Fox adds. 'Oh, goodness, I knew it, I said, "when this comes out… hmmm," but you move forward. Not all films you make are going to be great but that's the risk you take.'

In Arkansas, Fox plays 'Her', a woman with a penchant for colourful velour tracksuits, who lives in a trailer and gives the two drug-dealing protagonists their orders from a mysterious boss. 'It was a wonderful little cameo for me,' Fox explains, recalling how collaborative a process it was on set. 'The director allowed me to bring in my interpretation as well as add to the dialogue.

'When you get a bigger name, people respect your opinion and after the amount of time and film experience [I’ve gained], I know what I'm doing.'

Fox has been working in Hollywood since the early ‘80s but over the years she has added producer, author, presenter and podcast host to her CV. However, as a black woman, she has learnt that name recognition and IMDb credits don’t always encourage a white male-dominated industry to listen. It’s why her father said she should 'attack intelligently,' while Uma Thurman taught her 'to be more manipulative'.

'When I tried to talk back to Quentin Tarantino during [Kill Bill] training where he kicked our ass for six weeks in a row and I didn't get a compliment, I was like, "wait a minute!"' Fox chuckles. '[Uma said] I could get whatever I choose, "by what you say and how you say it".'

But Fox also believes that the ability for women to have their voice heard is down to the growing call for equality that continues to improve gender dynamics in Hollywood. 'I love to see a lot of women that are becoming directors like Regina King, Tasha Smith, my sister from Empire,' she says. 'Seeing more women in power positions where we're producing, directing, are heads of studios, that treatment got a lot better and I’m grateful for it.'

One of her favourite movie experiences was making the critically-acclaimed 1996 film Set It Off alongside Jada Pinkett Smith and Queen Latifah. Directed by F. Gary Gray, Fox played Frankie, a bank teller fired by her white bosses and forced into janitorial work until she and friends from her housing project seek financial security by robbing banks. 'F Gary Gray had come from the hood,' Fox says. 'Those were things that he had experienced so with us, as females, we were able to join forces and make every woman make sense and be connected.'

The film is a rare Hollywood heist thriller not just because it is led by four black women but also because of its socially-conscious themes of anti-Blackness, misogynoir{ =nofollow}, homophobia and police brutality that, unfortunately, still resonate today. 'It’s why it’s become a cult classic,' Fox says. 'I mean it's still happening.'

The recent and continuing protests against the police murders of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor have forced a wider examination of race relations across the pond and the weight of the conversation has been felt the most by black people, including Fox. 'There was one day where I just had to turn off,' she remembers. 'I didn't do any posting, I just kind of sat still and said, "Wow, our world".'

'It made me sad but then I became centred,' she adds. 'I'm a celebrity and I can lend my voice to causes so that we pay attention to those that we've given power to because they have to take care of our community. So instead of getting depressed about it, I organised my thoughts about how to, once again, attack intelligently.'

Arkansas is out on digital download from today (July 13) and disc from July 20.

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