The Original Kings of Comedy (2000)
84%RT Audience Score: 79%
Awards & Nominations: 3 nominations
If you want lots of laughs and don’t mind some profanity, The Original Kings of Comedy can deliver
The Original Kings of Comedy is a hilarious movie that will have you laughing until your sides hurt. Sure, some of the jokes may be a bit repetitive and the pacing can be slow at times, but the comedic talent of Steve Harvey, D.L. Hughley, Bernie Mac, and Cedric The Entertainer is undeniable. It’s like watching a live performance from the funniest guys in the room. Plus, Spike Lee’s direction adds a cool vibe to the whole thing. If you’re in the mood for some good old-fashioned belly laughs, this movie is definitely worth a watch.
Production Company(ies)
Sidus C J Entertainment, Muhan Investment
Distributor
Paramount Pictures
Release Type
Theatrical
Filming Location(s)
Charlotte Coliseum – 100 Paul Buck Boulevard, Charlotte, North Carolina, USA
MPAA / Certificate
Rated R for language and sex related humor
Year of Release
2000
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:Dolby Digital
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Aspect ratio:1.85 : 1
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Runtime:1h 55m
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Language(s):English
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Country of origin:United States
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Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Aug 18, 2000 Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Feb 27, 2001
Genre(s)
Documentary/Comedy
Keyword(s)
starring Steve Harvey, D.L Hughley, Cedric The Entertainer, Bernie Mac, directed by Spike Lee, written by Cedric the Entertainer, Steve Harvey, D.L Hughley, Bernie Mac, documentary, comedy, R rating, box office performance, budget, reviewed by Odie Henderson, Evening Standard Staff, Peter Bradshaw, Rick Groen, Ann Hornaday, Nathan Rabin, Dennis King, Joshua Brunsting, James Keith La Croix, Bill Gallo, David Sterritt, Tom Hutchinson, produced by Walter Latham, Paramount Pictures, Surround sound, Dolby Digital, DTS, Flat aspect ratio
Worldwide gross: $38,182,790
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $66,224,833
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,217
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 7,221,901
US/Canada gross: $38,182,790
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $66,224,833
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 952
US/Canada opening weekend: $11,053,832
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $19,171,941
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 679
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): $13,000,000
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): $22,547,405
Production budget ranking: 1,309
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): $12,141,778
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): $31,535,651
ROI to date (est.): 91%
ROI ranking: 973
Steve Harvey – Self
D.L. Hughley – Self
Bernie Mac – Self
Spike Lee – Director
Walter Latham – Producer
Director(s)
Spike Lee
Writer(s)
Cedric the Entertainer, Steve Harvey, D.L. Hughley, Bernie Mac
Producer(s)
Walter Latham
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
3 nominations
Academy Awards
All Critics (103) | Top Critics (44) | Fresh (85) | Rotten (18)
[Spike Lee] knows the show belongs to his comedians, so he aids and abets from the shadows like the best of accomplices. The result is the Stop Making Sense of stand-up comedy movies
August 7, 2019
Odie Henderson
Slant Magazine
TOP CRITIC
Their comic material is all cut from much the same cloth and lacks variety: their viewpoint is middle-aged; their “attitude” is strenuously confrontational.
August 7, 2019
Evening Standard Staff
London Evening Standard
TOP CRITIC
There are some good gags and routines here, but loads of them have been done with far more invention and wit by Richard Pryor and Eddie Murphy.
August 7, 2019
Peter Bradshaw
Guardian
TOP CRITIC
Sorry, but the king has long been crowned — these funny men are merely pretenders.
August 7, 2019 | Rating: 2.5/4
Rick Groen
Globe and Mail
TOP CRITIC
Like their predecessors, [Steve] Harvey, [D.L.] Hughley and Cedric [The Entertainer] transcend their immediate audience and create flashes of recognition that will hit home with nearly anyone.
August 7, 2019 | Rating: 3/4
Ann Hornaday
Baltimore Sun
TOP CRITIC
As a testament to the vitality of black comedy, The Original Kings Of Comedy is a success. As a comedy, however, it’s sluggishly paced and not nearly funny enough to justify its two-hour running time.
August 7, 2019
Nathan Rabin
AV Club
TOP CRITIC
The Original Kings of Comedy is a bracing rush of laughter — laughter at our differences, laughter at our anger, laughter at our common absurdities, laughter that brings us all closer together. These guys are royally funny.
August 7, 2019
Dennis King
Tulsa World
Ostensibly a shot performance of a comedians Steve Harvey, D.L. Hughley, Bernie Mac and Cedric The Entertainer, the film is not only genuinely funny, but also very much a cultural touchstone.
August 7, 2019 | Rating: A-
Joshua Brunsting
Movie Mezzanine
I laughed until I cried.
August 7, 2019
James Keith La Croix
Metro Times (Detroit, MI)
[The Original Kings of Comedy] is a fresh, intimate, gloriously unpolished performance film that measures up to the classics of the genre: Richard Pryor Live on the Sunset Strip and the notorious Eddie Murphy Raw.
August 7, 2019
Bill Gallo
Houston Press
Sometimes they’re truly hilarious; sometimes they’re lazy enough to milk laughs from scattershot vulgarity; and sometimes they try to pummel the audience into submission with humor…
August 7, 2019 | Rating: 2/5
David Sterritt
Christian Science Monitor
There are few British comics who can stand up to these stand-ups when it comes to outrageous comments on real life; with this film, Lee gives them a well-deserved global audience at last.
August 7, 2019
Tom Hutchinson
Radio Times…
Plot
February 26 and 27, 2000, the Original Kings of Comedy play Charlotte, NC. The themes are Blacks and Whites, men and women, old-school and hip-hop. Steve Harvey emcees, celebrates ’70s music and lyrics of love, and pokes at folks in the front row. D.L. Hughley mines racial differences and talks about his marriage. Cedric the Entertainer riffs on a Black president and on being grown up. Bernie Mac, who says he expresses what’s in the back of our minds, closes with reflections on being 42 (new aspects to his sex life and his attitude toward children). Spike Lee’s camera takes us backstage and off-stage with the Kings and into the crowd where everyone’s laughing.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
The Original Kings of Comedy features the comedic talents of Steve Harvey, D.L. Hughley, Cedric The Entertainer, and Bernie Mac.
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