The Source Magazine sat down with “Lee Daniels’ The Butler” star Terrence Howard, who dished on working with Oprah and why the historical film, out today, is so important. 

Terrence Howard plays the neighbor who Oprah’s character, Gloria Gaines, ends up having an affair with while her husband is busy at work serving as the butler for the President. 

Q: So tell me about why this is such an important film for you to be a part of?

Howard: Everyone wants to be a part of something that will be iconic and will be talked about. There’s a lot of actors doing a ton of work that very few people will see. Some of the work may be better than the work in this movie. But to be able to do good work and to be part of a great film that has a great purpose within society. Like to me, this film is comparable to “Crash” because “Crash” had a way of changing the society by asking them the personal questions inside of what matters about a man. Is it his outward actions in one big moment? Or is it his overall actions throughout the course of his life? And that, being a part of raising the consciousness of humanity, I like that.

Q: I agree. And can you speak about collaborating with Oprah? Cause you and her have some funny scenes together and some endearing scenes.

Howard: I got to work with Oprah…you know? I got to be next to someone who everyone else sees her in this light when everything is perfect for her, you know, they see the edited Oprah. They don’t see the woman that’s working to get her lines together, they don’t see the person uncomfortable with smoking a cigarette, but they’ve got to sell smoking a cigarette…they don’t get to see the human being that we personify as Oprah Winfrey. I got to work with the artist…Oprah…as an artist and that in itself…I was able to take gems from her that I’ll keep for the rest of my life.

Q: Can you tell me what you admire about Lee Daniels, as a director, as a friend?

Howard: Lee Daniels is a true artist, he’s an artist that is a beacon of light that every actor wants to come and play with because they know they’re going to find another facet within themselves that they didn’t even know existed. I will never be the same artist, ever, for the rest of my life as a result of what I learned about my artistry from working with – I call him the Maestro because he can pull magic out of anyone…he can make a symphony out of one single note cause my character was one note and he’s turned it into this beautiful symphony.

Q: The film covers so much of the Civil Rights Movement, so many different events. Is there anything, just in your preparation or research that surprised you? Or anything that you think was particularly special that the film highlighted?

Howard: Well I didn’t get to see the film yet, but I remember in the script, you know, how do you pull all of those great events taking place into a two hour moment and still keep the levity without it being a documentary? From what I saw in the script, it was really reflective of everything that was happening throughout the entire world at that time because it wasn’t taking place here. Remember with science, you throw a pebble into a pond…it doesn’t just move in one direction and create a ripple. The ripple is radial, and it creates a circumference of change until it reaches the end and comes back and that’s what was taking place throughout the world and we’re still feeling the ripples of that today. So this film will help us remember where those ripples and rufflings are coming from, so we’re not shaken by it and can move with it.

“Lee Daniels’ The Butler” is now playing!