The New Leading Men

Ebony, Dec, 1998 by Aldore Collier

Major movies give talented hunks a chance to shine in sexy roles

Black men in the movies have moved from being angry and villainous to being smart and sexy. Not that being angry is bad. Perhaps the best thing about the new Hollywood climate is that it allows the Black male actor to show the full range of his talent and personality.

A new spate of films shows Black actors from diverse backgrounds heating up movie theaters with the kind of sensuality rarely displayed on the big screen. Women across the country are still talking about Larenz Tate's hot and torrid love scenes with three different beautiful women in the film Why Do Fools Fall In Love, and the refined elegance that Adrian Lester exhibits in Primary Colors.

Two of the new Black leading men, Lester and Djimon Hounsou, the star of Amistad, are newcomers to America. Hounsou was homeless on the streets of Paris when he was discovered and transformed into an international model. He went on to appear in music videos and had small roles in the movies Stargate and Seven before landing the breakthrough role in 1997 as the powerful, elegant and magnetic Cinque, leader of a slave revolt, in Amistad.

Lester, a British-born actor, made his American screen debut earlier this year with John Travolta in Primary Colors. He trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts in London. In Primary Colors, he is the campaign manager for a Southern politician who runs for U.S. president. Lester has romantic scenes with a major campaign worker.

Taye Diggs, the newest of the newcomers, wowed women with his earnest, dramatic and sensuous performance in How Stella Got Her Groove Back. Besides his well-received performance, Diggs endeared himself to female audiences with the incredibly toned body that he displayed in a memorable, steamy shower scene. The Rochester. N.Y., native was in the original cast of the mega-hit Broadway musical Rent.

Even though he is being hailed as one of the hottest new sex symbols, Diggs vividly recalls the days he was "a geeky kid" who would pray at night, begging the Lord to help him appeal to girls. He may have had to wait a little while (he's in his mid-20s), but he definitely has hit pay dirt.

Like Diggs, Michael Beach gave a memorable movie performance that included a really hot love scene. In Soul Food, he was actress Vanessa L. Williams' frustrated husband who ended up in a sexual situation with his wife's cousin. His character in Soul Food was a far cry from his recurring role in television's ER, where he portrays a doctor's AIDS-infected husband.

These handsome and sexy actors--in addition to several others featured on these pages--are demonstrating to movie audiences worldwide just how talented, alluring, forceful and elegant the new Black male actors are.

Taye Diggs (left) and Djimon Hounsou (below), who won coveted roles in (respectively) How Stella Got Her Groove Back and Amistad, became instant sex symbols with their acclaimed performances and muscled physiques. Larenz Tale (opposite page), long considered cute and cherubic, has emerged as one of Hollywood's most sought-after actors. As teen-singing sensation Frankie Lymon in the movie Why Do Fools Fall In Love, he wooed and married beautiful women such as Vivica A. Fox (opposite page, top), as well as actresses Halle Berry and Lela Rochon.

The hit movie Soul Food provided a showcase for talented actors Jeffrey D. Sams (left) and Michael Beach (below). In the movie, Sams plants a kiss on Vivica A. Fox, who portrayed his wife. He also displays his skills at romantic passion in the new ABC-TV sitcom Cupid. Soul Food gave Beach an opportunity to exhibit his diverse talents and sensual side as husband to Vanessa L. Williams' character. He eventually becomes intimately involved with his wife's cousin, portrayed by Gina Ravera (below).

Tommy Davidson successfully has made the transition from television success on In Living Color to star on the big screen in such movies as Woo (with Jada Pinkett Smith, left). In real life, his leading lady is wife Marlene (lower left), who accompanied him to the premiere of Woo.

Adrian Lester, who is comfortable on both the theatrical stage and the big screen, was introduced to American audiences with a key role in Primary Colors, in which his character was campaign manager for John Travolta's character as a presidential candidate. Lester escorted his wife, Lolita (bottom), to the New York premiere of Primary Colors.

Taye Diggs lit up the movie screen in a number of scenes in How Stella Got Her Groove Back with Angela Bassett (above), and Whoopi Goldberg was also featured.

With his performance in Amistad, Djimon Hounsou has endeared himself to millions of movie fans. He also has become a regular on the Hollywood social scene and usually is accompanied by his girlfriend, Victoria Mohoney (left). When not performing on the big screen, Taye Diggs spends time with his real-life leading lady, girlfriend Idina Menzel (below), an actress and singer whom he escorted to the premiere of the hit movie.