Eric Jerome Dickey’s Friends and Lovers is now a television project.
Premiering on Lifetime, the television film adaptation of the late author’s New York Times bestselling novel will premiere in two parts as a part of the “Love of a Lifetime” romance slate.
The movie, directed by D’Angela Proctor, stars Naturi Naughton, Simone Missick, Kendrick Sampson and RonReaco Lee.
Who was Eric Jerome Dickey?
Known for writing novels centered around Black life, the late author had a way of blending romance, mystery, and adventure, earning him numerous awards.
Dubbed “one of the most successful Black authors of the last quarter-century,” in a New York Times obituary following his death in 2021, Eric Jerome Dickey is revered for his work in the literary space. He died at age 59 from cancer.
“As a Black author, he gave so much to his readers, even the ones who were not old enough to read,” Missick told Blavity’s Shadow and Act in our recent cast interview. “He meant a lot during a time where authors like him were serving Black women and Black audiences with these beautifully crafted stories. Sometimes, when people pass away, their legacy doesn’t get its due, and I know our director, D’Angela Proctor, was passionate about bringing this to screen.”
She added, “This is a mission of hers that she’s had for a while, and so in addition to being able to give honor to his words, it’s beautiful to be able to watch her mission come to pass and come to screen, and I’m thankful to be able to be a part of this. I hope that many more of his books are adapted to the screen because I think that the audience is there, and hopefully it will revive people reading his books again during a time when people aren’t really reading.”
Lee echoed that sentiment, recalling the first time he read the book that he now gets to lend his artistry to.
“I read [Friends and Lovers] when I moved to LA, and it’s great to see it get its just due,” he said. “There were so many books that I read when I first moved to LA. I really got into reading, primarily because I was broke and it was a cheap form of entertainment, and I was on the bus and having to travel for hours on LA’s public transit system.”
He added, “I had a lot of time, and so I would often, as an aspiring actor trying to make a living, those books became films in my head, and those characters, I would pick out and meticulously cast the book. I can’t remember how I cast Friends and Lovers, but I do know there were several books that I did that with. I’m honored to be a part of this. I pray that it just opens a flood case. I hope it does bring numbers. This is the first time I’ve been involved with a project like this,
Taking love from the pages to the screen
According to the film’s official synopsis:
Eric Jerome Dickey’s Friends and Lovers is a contemporary romantic drama exploring how friendship, passion, and forgiveness collide. The story follows two best friends, Debra (Naughton), a Type A doctor, and Shelby (Missick), a free-spirited rule breaker, as their lives intertwine with those of Leonard (Sampson), a rising but struggling comedian, and Tyrese (Lee), his loyal best friend. As Debra and Leonard’s love deepens, and Tyrese finds himself entangled with Shelby’s unpredictable ways, the four navigate the challenges of modern relationships. When tragedy strikes the group, they are forced to rebuild—transforming their bond from friendship into chosen family.
Despite being a film that is rooted in romantic love, its themes around platonic friendships are something that the cast is excited to have explored.
“I love the way we friend as Black women, the way our girlfriends get together, the way we have real talk amongst our sisters and our best friends,” said Naughton. “So, being on set and kind of bringing that to life through Simone, it was very natural. We were just kiki-ing between takes. We never knew each other, just through mutual friends loosely, but we’ve never worked together. She is such a professional and very funny, and really just a great energy on set. I really enjoyed having her as my BFF on-screen, and I feel like we actually fostered a true friendship off-screen as well.”
Missick doubled down on the energy between the two that translated from the script to the screen.
“It was really nice to discover,” said Missick of the sisterhood that was reflected between her and Naughton’s characters. “And for D’Angela, our director, to really come to the reality is that on the page, or I think, even in the book, Shelby might seem like she’s a little bit less reliable. She’s very self-obsessed, and it was fun to explore the fact that, as much as she’s looking for a romantic love, her love with her best friend is the most important. It is what she kind of looks to as a guide, and that’s her mainstay. She doesn’t have a relationship with her mother. Her best friend is her rock. That is her world.”
She added, “It was fun exploring that with Naturi and really trying to find the shared history that these two had, and watch Naturi’s character be selfish and very self-consumed about her finding her own version of love. It’s very true with women and with girlfriends. You have that friend who, just every time you talk to her, it’s always about her. And once 30 minutes goes by, she’s like, ‘Oh, hey, girl, how you doing? Oh, OK great. Well, the conversation is over because I gotta go.’ It was great for Naturi and I to be able to figure out those dynamics. And she’s a wonderful actress, so it was a blessing to be able to work with her.”
Showcasing men in a different light
Lee says it was refreshing to portray a character like Tyrese, who doesn’t typically show up on the screen.
“I think he is the guy you kind of forget about,” he said. “He’s kind of become conditioned to it, specifically in the first film. He’s one of those guys, you know the saying, ‘Nice guys finish last,’ and I think there are a lot of guys that just kind of accept that as a reality, and they’ll kind of live life as such.”
The actor continued, “He gives those guys a voice, and then I think when we see what his hurt kind of looks like, I think for a lot of men, myself included, hurt can sometimes, especially when I was younger, hurt could 9 times out of 10, turn into some form of a destructive behavior. I think we saw that in the second film that he was searching for something. A lot of men, it’s in the form of, like, sexual conquest. We saw him do that, but what I really liked about the character, even in that season of I’m gonna do me, there was the [thought] that doing me, it’s not going to fulfill me, so to see him make that turn, make that commitment it speaks to what a lot of men go through in life, in terms of growing up. Let’s be honest, women tend to mature way faster than men, so a lot of times, a woman has to kind of sit back and let a man help his hand a few times, and if you’re lucky, if you’re blessed and fortunate, you don’t lose that special person in the process. So, luckily, he didn’t. I think a lot of cats they do lose. I know several of us have lost a special person because they just weren’t ready.”
When does the two-part event air?
Eric Jerome Dickey’s Friends and Lovers premieres on Nov. 15, with part two of the film airing on Nov. 16.